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PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 
Or 

BLOSSOM  TIME  AT  FRIENDLY  TERRACE 


or  CALIF. 


The  Friendly  Terrace  Series 

BY 
HARRIET  LUMMIS  SMITH 


The  Girls  of  Friendly  Terrace  $1-65 

Peggy  Raymond's  Vacation  -  7.65 

Peggy  Raymond's  School  Days  /  .65 

The  Friendly  Terrace  Quartette  1.65 

Peggy  Raymond's  Way           -  1.75 


THE  PAGE  COMPANY 
53  Beacon  Street,   Boston,  Mass. 


PEGGY    RAYMOND 


jfrienMg  Uerrace  Series 

PEGGY  RAYMOND'S 
WAY 

Or,  Blossom  Time  at  Friendly  Terrace 


BY 

HARRIET  LUMMIS   SMITH 

Author  of  "The  Girls  of  Friendly  Terrace," 
"Peggy  Raymond's  Vacation,"  "Peggy 
Raymond's  School  Days,"  "The 
Friendly  Terrace  Quar- 
tette," etc. 


ILLUSTRATED  BY 
FRANK  T.  MERRILL 


BOSTON 
COMPANY 


m 


THE  PAGE 
MDCCCCXXII 


Copyright,  1922, 
BY  THE  PAGE  COMPANY 

All  rights  reserved 


Made  in  U.  S.  A. 


First  Impression,  August,  1922 


PRINTED  BY  C.  H.  SIMONDS   COMPANY 
BOSTON,  MASS.,  U.  S.  A. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

I  WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME?     ...*..  1 

II    A  TELEPHONE  PAKTY 22 

III  A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART 39 

IV  AN  AFTERNOON  CALL 59 

V    THE  RUMMAGE  SALE 69 

VI  PRISCILLA  HAS  A  SECRET   ....  85 

VII  THE  FRIENDLY  TERRACE  ORPHANAGE  .  98 

VIII  THE  LONGEST  WEEK  ON  RECORD  .     .  113 

IX  THE  MOST  WONDERFUL  THING  IN  THE 

WORLD 129 

X    MISTRESS  AND  MAID 143 

XI  QUITE  INFORMAL  ...:...  156 

XII    GOOD-BY 169 

XIII  PEGGY  GIVES  A  DINNER  PARTY     .     .  186 

XIV  AT  THE  FOOT-BALL  GAME  ....  201 
XV  THE  CURE      ........  215 

XVI    DELIVERANCE 230 

XVII  PEGGY  COMES  TO  A  DECISION  .     .     .  241 

XVIII  A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  .                            .  252 


2132929 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTEB  PAGE 

XIX  THE  END  OP  SCHOOL  LIFE  .     .     .     .268 

XX  A  SURPRISE    ........  284 

XXI    A  MISSING  BRIDE 296 

XXII  A  JULY  WEDDING                                .  313 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

PEGGY  RAYMOND      ....    Frontispiece 
"  '  COME  RIGHT  IN,'  SAID  AMY  WITH  A  MISLEAD- 
ING AIR  OF  CORDIALITY  " 9 

"  '  A  HUNDRED  DOLLARS  AIN*T  ANY  TOO  MUCH  TO 

PAY  FOR  HAVING  YOUR  LIFE  SAVED  '  '  .  .  I2/ 
"  SHE  RAISED  HER  EYES  AND  MET  HIS  "  .  .  .  184 
"PEGGY  LOOKED  AT  HIM  WITHOUT  REPLYING"  .  247 


Peggy  Raymond's  Way 

CHAPTER  I 

WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME? 

IT  was  the  first  day  of  the  spring  vacation, 
and  Amy  Lassell  had  spent  it  sewing.  To  be 
frank,  it  had  not  measured  up  to  her  idea  of  a 
holiday.  Self-indulgence  was  Amy's  besetting 
weakness.  Her  dearest  friend,  Peggy  Ray- 
mond, was  never  happy  unless  she  was  busy  at 
something,  but  Amy  loved  the  luxury  of  idle- 
ness. 

Yet  although  indolence  appealed  so  strongly 
to  Amy's  temperament,  to  do  her  justice  she 
was  generally  able  to  turn  a  deaf  ear  to  its 
call.  The  first  summer  after  America's  entry 
into  the  war  she  had  enlisted  in  the  Land  Army 
along  with  Peggy  and  Priscilla,  and  then  in  the 
fall  had  taken  up  her  work  at  the  local  Red 
Cross  headquarters,  serving  in  an  unpaid  posi- 
tion as  conscientiously  as  if  she  had  received  a 


PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 


salary  and  was  depending  on  it  for  her  bread 
and  butter. 

After  a  strenuous  year  with  the  Ked  Cross, 
Amy  had  entered  college  with  Euth  Wylie. 
Neither  girl  had  expected  to  enter  till  after  the 
close  of  the  war,  and  Amy  was  continually 
harping  upon  the  respect  which  the  young  and 
unsophisticated  Freshmen  were  bound  to  feel 
for  classmates  of  such  advanced  years.  But 
Nelson  Hallowell's  discharge  from  the  service 
had  altered  the  aspect  of  affairs.  Euth  had 
pledged  herself  to  keep  Nelson's  position  for 
him  till  he  should  return,  and  Amy  had 
promised  to  wait  for  Euth.  The  wound  which 
had  kept  Nelson  in  the  hospital  less  than  a 
month  had  nevertheless  incapacitated  him  from 
military  service.  Heavy-hearted,  he  had  re- 
turned to  his  job  at  the  book  store,  while  Euth 
and  Amy  had  immediately  made  their  plans  for 
entering  college  just  two  years  behind  Peggy 
and  Priscilla. 

After  her  months  of  hard  study,  the  first  day 
of  the  spring  vacation  found  Amy  at  the  sew- 
ing machine,  which  in  itself  was  sufficient  proof 
that,  whatever  her  natural  bias  in  the  direction 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME? 


of  indolence,  her  will  was  more  than  a  match 
for  that  tendency.  As  a  matter  of  fact  she  was 
the  only  one  of  the  Friendly  Terrace  quartette 
to  spend  the  day  in  unremitting  industry. 
Peggy  and  Ruth  had  gone  off  with  Graham  for 
the  day.  Priscilla  was  entertaining  an  out-of- 
town  guest.  But  Amy,  resolution  manifest  in 
every  Hue  of  her  plump  little  figure,  was  sew- 
ing for  dear  life. 

Though  the  armistice  had  been  signed 
months  before,  there  still  remained  foes  to 
fight,  as  the  girls  had  promptly  discovered. 
The  reaction  from  economy  and  hard  work  had 
come  in  the  shape  of  an  orgy  of  extravagance 
and  frivolity.  The  high  war  prices  were  con- 
tinually going  higher,  as  dealers  realized  that 
people  would  get  what  they  wanted  regardless 
of  price.  The  four  Friendly  Terrace  girls, 
after  an  afternoon  of  shopping  which  had 
ended  in  the  purchase  of  a  box  of  hair-pins  and 
two  spools  of  thread,  had  returned  home  to  hold 
a  council  of  war. 

' 'The  only  way  to  bring  prices  down  is  to 
stop  buying  things,"  declared  Peggy,  with  all 
the  authority  of  a  college  Junior.  "I  don't 


PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 


know  as  I  have  anything  to  make  over,  but  if  I 
have,  nothing  new  for  me  this  spring." 

Amy  sighed.  "I'd  just  been  luxuriating  in 
the  thought  of  a  lot  of  new  dresses,"  she  said 
mournfully.  "Don't  you  know  how  after 
you've  been  dieting,  all  at  once  you're  hungry 
for  creamed  chicken  and  pineapple  fritters,  and 
chocolate  with  whipped  cream,  and  strawberry 
sundaes,  all  rolled  into  one.  And  that's  just 
the  way  I  feel  about  clothes.  But  I  suppose  it 
will  end  in  my  making  over  my  blue  taffeta." 

"Pve  two  or  three  summer  dresses  that  will 
do  very  well  if  I  make  the  skirts  scanty," 
said  Euth.  "They're  too  full  for  this  sea- 
son." 

They  talked  on  seriously,  planning  their 
little  economies  as  if  they  expected  unaided  to 
bring  down  the  high  cost  of  living.  They  were 
not  the  sort  of  girls  who  follow  the  crowd  un- 
thinkingly, nor  had  any  of  them  contracted  the 
fatal  habit  of  asking,  "What  can  one  do?" 
The  program  they  outlined  would  have  resulted 
in  a  general  lowering  of  prices  in  a  month's 
time  if  every  one  had  agreed  to  it.  And  it  did 
not  occur  to  them  that  public  indifference  ex- 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME? 


cused  them  from  doing  their  little  part  toward 
combating  a  serious  evil. 

That  was  how  it  happened  that  Amy  Lassell 
had  spent  the  spring  day  sewing.  The  blue 
taffeta  had  been  ripped  and  pressed  in  antici- 
pation of  the  vacation  leisure,  and  as  soon  as 
the  breakfast  dishes  were  out  of  the  way  Amy 
had  commandeered  the  dining-room  table  as 
a  cutting  table.  "With  the  help  of  a  paper 
pattern  she  had  remodeled  the  taffeta  ac- 
cording to  the  latest  dictates  of  fashion. 
Caution  suggested  that  it  would  be  advisable 
to  wait  for  assistance  in  the  fitting,  but  having 
basted  the  breadths  together  and  surveyed  her 
reflection  in  the  mirror,  Amy  had  been  so 
favorably  impressed  that  she  had  gone  to  work 
energetically  stitching  up  seams. 

Like  many  people  whose  natural  tendency  is 
in  the  direction  of  indolence,  Amy  was  capable 
of  relentless  industry,  almost  as  though  she 
were  afraid  that  if  once  she  halted  she  might 
not  get  her  courage  to  the  point  of  starting 
again.  She  swallowed  a  hasty  luncheon  and 
rushed  back  to  her  sewing.  Her  eyes  grew 
tired,  her  back  ached.  She  became  nervous 


PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 


and  hot  and  impatient,  so  that  breaking  a 
thread  or  dropping  a  thimble  seemed  almost  a 
calamity.  And  yet  she  did  not  stop. 

It  was  after  five  when  she  laid  her  work 
reluctantly  aside.  Amy's  responsibilities  for 
the  day  were  not  limited  to  the  blue  taffeta. 
As  in  many  another  household,  the  domestic 
service  problem  had  become  acute  in  the 
Lassell  establishment  during  the  last  few 
years.  Incapable  servants  demanding  pre- 
posterous wages,  had  been  replaced  by  others 
equally  incompetent,  and  there  had  been 
interims  when  it  had  been  difficult  to  secure  so 
much  as  a  laundress.  Amy  and  her  mother 
had  learned  a  good  many  short  cuts  to  achieve- 
ment, and  had  accepted  the  frequent  necessity 
of  doing  their  own  work  with  a  philosophy  of 
which  they  would  have  been  incapable  in  pre- 
war times.  On  this  first  day  of  vacation  Amy 
was  without  a  servant,  and  without  a  mother, 
as  well;  for  Mrs.  Lassell  had  left  home  that 
morning  not  to  return  till  nearly  bed-time. 

At  five  o'clock  the  realization  that  she  must 
prepare  her  father's  supper  forced  itself  on 
Amy's  attention.  It  was  not  a  formidable  re- 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME? 


sponsibility,  for  at  breakfast  that  morning  Mr. 
Lassell  had  informed  her  that  he  was  to  take 
a  customer  out  to  lurfch  and  would  be  satisfied 
with  very  little  for  the  evening  meal.  Amy 
meant  to  take  him  at  his  word.  There  was 
cold  meat,  quite  enough  for  two,  she  thought; 
and  some  potatoes  to  fry,  and  her  father  did 
not  care  much  for  dessert.  Accordingly, 
Amy  had  waited  till  five  o'clock  before  she 
laid  down  her  sewing,  and  then  she  realized 
for  the  first  time  how  very  tired  she  was.  A 
glimpse  of  herself  in  the  mirror  emphasized  her 
certainty  that  it  was  high  time  to  stop.  Amy's 
fair  hair  was  disheveled,  her  plump  cheeks 
brilliantly  pink.  There  were  dark  lines  under 
her  eyes,  eloquent  of  weariness.  Amy  regarded 
herself  with  extreme  disfavor. 

" Looks  as  if  I'd  taken  up  rouge  in  my  old 
age.  And  I  positively  must  do  my  hair  over.  I 
can't  ask  even  poor  patient  daddy  to  look  at 
such  a  frowsy  head  all  through  supper.  0,  well, 
he  won't  mind,  if  I  am  a  little  late." 

Encouraging  herself  with  this  reflection,  Amy 
bathed  her  burning  cheeks,  combed  her  hair  has- 
tily, and  slipped  into  a  little  gingham  gown 


PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 


which,  if  somewhat  faded  and  passee,  had  at 
least  the  merit  of  being  fresh  and  clean.  It  but- 
toned in  the  back,  and  by  virtue  of  much  twist- 
ing and  stretching  Amy  finally  succeeded  in  se- 
curing the  middle  button  which  for  a  time  had 
defied  her  efforts.  And  just  as  she  did  so,  the 
door-bell  rang. 

Amy  went  placidly  downstairs.  She  had  no 
apprehensions  about  the  door-bell.  She  took  it 
for  granted  that  it  was  somebody  to  collect  for 
the  newspaper,  or  an  old-clothes  man,  or  else  a 
friend  so  intimate  that  she  could  ask  her  into 
the  kitchen  while  she  made  her  supper  prepara- 
tions. As  she  reached  the  door  she  realized  her 
mistake.  Of  the  two  young  people  waiting  ad- 
mission she  had  met  the  sister  several  times. 
The  brother  she  knew  merely  by  sight,  for  the 
family  had  moved  into  the  neighborhood  only 
recently. 

For  a  moment  Amy's  mood  was  one  of  un- 
qualified dismay.  She  wanted  to  turn  and  run. 
With  lightning-like  rapidity  she  compared  her 
faded  gingham  with  the  stylish  frock  setting  off 
the  girlish,  graceful  figure  of  Hildegarde  Carey. 
And  Hildegarde 's  brother,  Kobert,  if  looking  a 


COME  RIGHT  IN/  SAID  AMY  WITH  A   MISLEADING  AIR 
OF    CORDIALITY  " 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME? 


trifle  bored,  was  immaculately  attired.  Amy 
recollected  that  in  her  absorption  with  the  blue 
taffeta  she  had  neglected  to  dust  the  living  room 
that  morning. 

Amy  opened  the  door  with  a  smile  that  poorly 
concealed  her  anguish  of  spirit.  Her  flickering 
hope  that  Hildegarde  had  made  a  mistake  in  the 
number  was  dissipated  by  the  composure  of 
Hildegarde 's  greeting.  The  two  young  people 
entered,  as  Amy  realized,  without  waiting  to  be 
asked,  and  in  the  hall  Hildegarde  performed  the 
ceremony  of  introduction. 

"Come  right  in,"  said  Amy  with  a  mislead- 
ing air  of  cordiality.  She  wondered  if  she  had 
better  apologize  for  the  undusted  living  room, 
but  decided  against  it.  Perhaps  they  would 
overlook  it,  though  Robert  Carey  impressed  her 
as  one  who  would  notice  the  least  little  thing 
out  of  the  way.  Amy  decided  that  the  young 
fellow's  handsome  face  was  almost  spoiled  by 
its  discontented  expression. 

Another  shock  came  when  she  said  to  Hilde- 
garde, "Let  me  take  your  coat."  She  expected 
Hildegarde  to  reply  that  the  coat  was  light  and 
that  she  did  not  mind  it  for  the  few  minutes  she 


10  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

had  to  stay ;  but  on  the  contrary  she  not  only  re- 
moved her  coat,  but  slipped  off  her  gloves,  un- 
pinned her  hat,  and  added  it  to  the  collection 
Amy  carried  into  the  hall  with  a  growing  sense 
of  stupefaction.  "Any  one  would  think,"  she 
told  herself,  "that  she  was  an  old  friend  come 
to  spend  the  day." 

Perhaps  Amy's  perplexity  partly  explained 
the  fact  that  the  next  half  hour  dragged.  Amy 
was  not  her  usual  entertaining  self.  She 
thought  of  the  dust  showing  gray  against  the 
shining  mahogany  of  the  piano.  She  thought  of 
her  faded  gingham.  She  heard  herself  talking 
stupidly,  unnaturally,  and  chiefly  about  the 
weather.  Robert  Carey  looked  more  bored  than 
ever. 

At  half  past  six  her  father  came  in.  He 
glanced  at  the  group  in  the  living  room  as  he 
entered,  and  Amy  hastily  summoned  him.  Her 
guests  must  realize  that  when  the  man  of  the 
house  came  home  it  was  time  to  leave.  Amy 
introduced  her  father,  pulled  out  an  arm  chair 
invitingly,  and  Mr.  Lassell  seated  himself.  It 
was  from  him  that  his  daughter  had  inherited 
her  sense  of  humor,  and  on  this  occasion  he 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME?  11 

made  himself  much  more  entertaining  than 
Amy  had  done.  The  conversation  became  al- 
most animated. 

The  clock  in  the  hall  struck  seven,  tolling  out 
the  notes  sonorously.  Every  one  seemed  to  be 
listening  to  it,  and  Amy  flushed.  It  was  almost 
as  if  the  clock  had  said,  "Time  to  go  home! 
Time  to  go  home!"  And  then  to  her  horror 
her  father  turned  toward  her  inquiringly. 
"Hadn't  you  better  put  on  the  supper,  my 
dear?"  he  asked.  "Your  friends  will  be  get- 
ting hungry. ' ' 

For  an  agonized  half  minute  Amy  vainly 
tried  to  think  of  something  she  could  say  to 
soften  the  blow.  She  was  magnanimous  enough 
to  acquit  her  father  of  all  blame.  Seeing  them 
sitting  there  at  that  hour,  especially  as  Hilde- 
garde  had  taken  off  her  hat,  he  had  innocently 
asumed  that  they  had  been  invited  to  dinner. 
And  of  course  his  blunder  was  equivalent  to 
saying  that  they  had  stayed  longer  than  was 
proper  or  desirable. 

Then  Amy's  head  whirled  again.  Her  guests 
did  not  spring  to  their  feet  as  she  had  ex- 
pected them  to  do,  protesting  that  they  had  not 


12  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

dreamed  it  was  so  late.  Instead  they  sat  quite 
still,  only  murmuring  a  polite  disclaimer  of 
being  hungry.  With  the  force  of  a  blow  the 
realization  came  over  Amy  that  they  had  ac- 
cepted her  father 's  tacit  invitation.  They  were 
going  to  stay  to  supper. 

Amy  rose,  murmuring  something  unintelli- 
gible, and  got  out  of  the  room  quickly.  0,  if 
Peggy  were  only  home,  Peggy  who  had  such  a 
faculty  for  evolving  something  savory  and  ap- 
petizing from  the  least  promising  materials. 
Amy's  cooking  until  recently  had  been  confined 
to  chafing-dish  delicacies  and  candy.  It  was 
too  late,  she  realized,  to  add  to  her  scanty 
stores.  She  must  feed  four  people  with  what 
had  seemed  barely  enough  for  two,  and  must 
do  it  quickly. 

Mechanically  she  lighted  the  oven  of  the  gas 
stove.  She  remembered  there  was  a  can  of  to- 
mato soup  in  the  house,  and  the  cold  meat, 
sliced  very  thin,  might  possibly  pass  muster. 
She  herself  would  refuse  meat.  Luckily  there 
was  a  generous  plateful  of  potatoes.  Creamed 
and  with  a  little  cheese  grated  over  them,  they 
would  be  appetizing — and  filling.  She  could 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME?  13 

make  baking  powder  biscuit, — Amy  excelled  in 
baking  powder  biscuit — and  there  was  honey 
to  eat  with  them.  For  dessert  she  would  fall 
back  on  preserved  peaches  and  some  left-over 
fruit  cake.  It  was  a  queer,  hit-or-miss  meal, 
not  a  company  repast  in  any  sense  of  the  word, 
but  the  best  she  could  do  under  the  circum- 
stances. 

It  was  while  the  biscuits  were  browning  in 
the  oven,  and  Aniy  was  hastily  setting  the  table 
for  four,  that  her  native  common-sense  re-as- 
serted itself.  "After  all,"  her  thoughts  ran, 
"if  people  take  pot  luck,  they  can't  expect  to 
find  things  just  as  they  would  be  if  they  were 
especially  invited.  They've  seemed  real 
friendly  and  if  they  like  me  well  enough  to  stay 
to  a  pick-up  supper,  the  first  time  they've  ever 
set  foot  in  my  home,  I  ought  to  meet  them  half 
way.  I  can't  give  them  much  to  eat,  but  I  don't 
need  to  be  quite  as  stupid  as  I've  been  for  the 
last  hour." 

And  so  it  came  about  that  when  the  guests 
were  summoned  to  the  dining  room,  they  en- 
countered a  very  different  hostess  from  the  one 
who  had  entertained  them  previously,  a  hostess 


14  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

who  twinkled  and  sparkled  and  kept  them 
laughing.  It  seemed  to  Amy  that,  when  she 
had  removed  the  soup  plates  and  brought  in  the 
sliced  meat  and  creamed  potatoes,  she  had  seen 
an  expression  of  astonishment  flicker  across 
Hildegarde's  face,  but  she  resolutely  put  the 
thought  aside  and  continued  to  make  herself 
agreeable.  The  baking-powder  biscuits  had 
risen  nobly  to  the  occasion.  Amy  thought 
them  the  best  she  had  ever  made.  And  she 
saw  with  relief  that  the  bored  expression  had 
disappeared  from  Eobert  Carey's  face,  and 
that  he  really  seemed  to  be  enjoying  himself. 

Then  suddenly  into  the  midst  of  all  this 
gaiety,  Hildegarde  dropped  a  bomb  in  the 
shape  of  a  question.  "What  happened  to  de- 
tain Isabel?" 

"Isabel?" 

"Yes,  Isabel  Vincent,  you  know." 

"I'm  afraid,"  Amy  hesitated,  "that  I  don't 
know  any  one  of  that  name." 

Apparently  the  meal  had  come  to  a  full  stop. 
"Why,"  Hildegarde  cried,  "the  Isabel  Vin- 
cent who  attended  the  Pelham  school  when  I 
was  there." 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME?  15 

She  was  so  insistent  that  Amy  uncon- 
sciously became  apologetic.  "I'm  sorry  but  I 
can't  say  I  remember  such  a  girl.  Did  she 
ever  say  she  had  met  me?" 

"Why,"  Hildegarde  almost  screamed, 
"didn't  you  ask  us  here  to-night  to  meet  her?" 

"To  meet  Isabei  Vincent!  Why,  I  never 
heard  of  her." 

"There's  some  mistake,"  exclaimed  Robert. 
He  had  just  helped  himself  to  a  fifth  baking- 
powder  biscuit,  but  he  laid  it  down  unbuttered. 
"You've  made  some  mistake,"  he  informed  his 
sister. 

Hildegarde  ignored  him  and  addressed  her- 
self to  Amy.  "Didn't  you  telephone  me  this 
morning?" 

"I— why,  to  tell  the  truth,  no  I  didn't." 

"Then  it  was  a  disgusting  practical  joke. 
Some  one  called  me  up  about  eleven  o  'clock  and 
said  she  was  Amy  Lassell,  and  that  Isabel  Vin- 
cent was  to  stop  here  twenty-four  hours  on  her 
way  to  New.  York  from  her  home  in  Chicago. 
And  then  she  invited  Bob  and  me  to  dinner  to 
meet  Isabel.  There  wasn't  anything  in  her 
manner  to  give  me  an  idea  it  was  a  hoax." 


16  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

But  Amy  had  found  the  clew.  "0,  did  Isa- 
bel come  from  Chicago?"  she  cried.  "Then  I 
know.  It  was  Avery  Zall  who  telephoned  you. ' ' 

"But  I  don't  know  her/' 

"She  went  away  to  boarding  school — yes,  it 
was  the  Pelham  school,  I'm  sure.  And  I  know 
she  has  a  friend  from  Chicago  visiting  her. 
Probably  the  Vincent  girl  spoke  of  knowing 
you,  and  Avery  called  you  up.  0,  dear!" 
groaned  Amy  with  a  sudden  change  of  counte- 
nance. 

"What's  the  matter?"  demanded  Bob  Carey, 
still  ignoring  his  biscuit. 

"I've  cheated  you  out  of  a  regular  feast. 
The  Zalls  have  a  wonderful  cook.  You'd  have 
had  broiled  chicken  and  fresh  mushrooms  and 
I  don't  know  what  beside,  and  I've  given  you 
cold  meat  and — " 

"You've  given  us  the  best  biscuits  I  ever 
ate,"  said  Bob,  and  buttered  his  fifth,  but  his 
sister  had  turned  pale. 

"I  don't  believe  any  one  ever  did  such  a 
dreadful  thing  before.  Here  we  descended  on 
you  without  warning  and  simply  forced  you  to 
invite  us  to  stay — " 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME?  17 

"Happy  escape,  I  think,"  said  Bob.  "If 
there's  anything  I  hate,  it's  these  social  stunts 
Hildegarde 's  crazy  about." 

"The  only  dreadful  part,"  said  Amy,  reas- 
suring the  distressed  Hildegarde,  "is  that 
you've  exchanged  a  perfectly  gorgeous  dinner 
for  a  pick-up  supper." 

"But  what  must  Miss — Miss  Zall  think  of 
me!" 

"She  must  know  there's  some  mistake. 
Probably  they  're  not  waiting  dinner  any  longer, 
for  it's  after  eight  o'clock." 

"0,"  groaned  Hildegarde,  "I  never  was  so 
mortified.  What  am  I  going  to  do  ? " 

"It  seems  to  me  you'd  better  finish  your  sup- 
per, such  as  it  is,"  suggested  Amy.  "And  then 
you  can  call  up  Avery  Zall  and  explain  your 
mistake.  She'll  see  that  the  names  sound  alike 
over  the  phone.  And  after  that  there'll  be 
plenty  of  time  to  see  your  friends." 

"Seems  to  me,"  suggested  Bob,  "that  as 
long  as  we've  started  the  evening  here,  we 
might  as  well  put  it  through." 

His  eyes  met  Amy's  with  a  twinkle  that  was 


18  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

like  a  spark  to  tinder.  Amy  struggled  for  a 
moment,  then  gave  way  to  peals  of  laughter. 

"0,"  she  gasped,  when  at  length  she  could 
find  her  voice,  "What  must  you  have  thought 
of  me,  inviting  you  to  dinner  and  then  coming 
down  in  this  old,  faded  gingham." 

"And  what  must  you  have  thought  of  me," 
Hildegarde  cried,  "coming  at  such  an  hour  and 
calmly  taking  off  my  hat." 

"The  dust  was  thick  over  everything," 
giggled  Amy.  "I've  been  sewing  every  minute 
all  day  long,  and  I  warned  father  to  expect  a 
light  meal. ' ' 

"I  should  have  known  I  had  made  a  mis- 
take," Hildegarde  lamented,  "when  you  never 
said  a  word  about  Isabel.  I  don't  know  how 
I  could  have  been  so  ridiculously  stupid." 

But  for  all  her  dismay,  she  laughed.  Indeed 
if  laughter  aids  digestion,  there  was  little 
danger  that  Amy's  biscuits  would  disagree 
with  any  one,  even  Eobert,  who  had  dispatched 
such  an  extravagant  number. 

While  Amy  cleared  the  table  and  brought  in 
the  dessert,  Hildegarde  went  to  the  phone  and 
explained  matters  to  a  young  woman  whose 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME?  19 

preliminary  stiffness  melted  as  Hildegarde  re- 
viewed the  situation.  And  then  Hildegarde 
hurried  back  to  inform  her  brother  that  they 
must  go  over  as  soon  as  he  had  finished.  "She 
was  as  sweet  as  she  could  be,  but  she  said 
they  had  waited  dinner  an  hour. ' ' 

"So  it's  up  to  you  to  'gobble  and  git,' 
quoted  Amy,  dishing  out  the  preserves  with  a 
lavish  hand. 

"I'm  not  going  to  be  hurried  over  that  fruit 
cake,"  declared  Bob.  "It  carries  me  back  to 
the  merry  Christmas  time." 

"It  ought  to,  for  it's  a  Christmas  cake,  but 
it's  been  kept  in  a  tin  box  with  an  apple  and  I 
hope  it  isn't  dry.  It  was  all  I  had  in  the  cake 
line."  Amy  paused  to  laugh  again.  "I  really 
must  stop,"  she  exclaimed,  wiping  her  moist 
eyes.  "They  say  that  laughing  at  meal-time 
makes  one  fat,  and  I  don't  dare  risk  another 
pound. ' ' 

"Can't  have  too  much  of  a  good  thing,"  de- 
clared Bob  Carey  with  a  significant  glance  at 
the  flushed  face.  Strictly  speaking,  Amy  was 
perhaps  the  least  pretty  of  the  four  Friendly 
Terrace  girls ;  but  good  humor  has  a  charin,  and 


20  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

a  face  radiant  with  fun  can  hold  its  own  against 
discontented  beauty  any  day.  There  was  'Such 
frank  admiration  in  the  look  the  young  man 
bent  upon  her,  that  Amy's  cheeks  grew  hot  with 
an  unwonted  self-consciousness. 

The  brother  and  sister  left  with  evident  re- 
luctance. "Now  we've  had  dinner  with  you," 
said  Hildegarde,  "you  must  dine  with  us  very 
soon." 

"Oh,  this  doesn't  deserve  to  be  counted," 
Amy  laughed.  "I'll  ask  you  again  some  day 
and  show  you  what  I  can  do  if  I  really  try." 

"No,  don't,"  pleaded  Bob.  "Have  us  again 
when  you're  going  to  have  biscuit.  It's  so 
much  jollier  to  be  informal  than  to  work  the 
society  racket. ' '  And  then  Hildegarde  carried 
him  off,  protesting  that,  if  they  didn't  hurry, 
Avery  Zall  would  not  believe  a  word  of  her 
excuse. 

Amy  found  her  father  clearing  the  table. 
She  put  on  her  long  apron  and  joined  him,  chat- 
tering excitedly  as  she  worked. 

"No  full  garbage  can  to-night,  Daddy.  Ev- 
ery dish  is  scraped  clean.  I  suppose  I  ought  to 
feel  crushed  over  setting  such  a  meal  before 


WHAT'S  IN  A  NAME?  21 

people  I  hardly  knew,  but  somehow  I  don't." 
Her  father  smiling,  responsive  to  her  high 

spirits,  shook  his  head. 
"It  isn't  much  to  set  good  food  before  folks, 

Amy.    Any  waiter  in  a  restaurant  can  do  that. 

Give  people  the  best  of  yourself  and  you  don't 

need  to  worry  about  your  bill  of  fare." 


CHAPTER  n 

A  TELEPHONE  PAHTY 

HOWEVER  much  the  rest  of  the  year  may  drag, 
the  spring  vacation  always  ignores  the  speed 
limit.  What  with  dress-making  and  shopping, 
and  going  over  one's  bureau  drawers  and  clos- 
ets in  anticipation  of  the  spring  cleaning,  and 
trying  to  do  the  things  one  has  been  postponing 
till  this  week  of  leisure,  and  taking  advantage 
of  all  the  pleasures  that  start  up  like  mush- 
rooms, twenty-four  hours  in  a  day  are  all  too 
few.  When  Priscilla  dropped  in  on  Peggy  to 
suggest  going  out  into  the  country  for  wild 
flowers,  the  Monday  afternoon  that  closed  the 
holiday  season,  Peggy  hesitated. 

"I'd  love  it.  I  don't  feel  that  spring  is 
really  here  until  I  have  picked  a  few  violets  and 
spring  beauties.  But  I  was  thinking  of  going 
to  see  Mary  Donaldson." 

"Why,  is  anything  the  matter?"  Priscilla 

asked. 

22 


A  TELEPHONE  PARTY  23 

Peggy  stared.  "Matter!  You  know  that  since 
that  attack  of  inflammatory  rheumatism  she 
hasn't  walked — " 

"But  I  meant  anything  new." 

"0,  there's  nothing  new,  not  as  far  as  I 
know.  I  haven't  been  in  to  see  Mary  since — 
0,  dear,  I'm  afraid  it's  been  an  age." 

"I  only  meant,"  explained  Priscilla  reason- 
ably, "that  if  Mary's  no  worse  off  than  she  has 
been  for  the  last  year  and  a  half,  there's  no 
especial  point  in  taking  to-day  to  go  to  see  her. 
You  could  go  any  afternoon." 

"I  could,"  owned  Peggy  with  a  significant 
inflection. 

"And  it's  such  a  perfect  day  to  go  after  wild 
flowers." 

Peggy  looked  from  the  window.  The  blue 
sky  seemed  to  smile  an  invitation.  Priscilla 's 
argument  all  at  once  appeared  unanswerable. 

"Yes,  isn't  it  lovely!"  Peggy  drew  a  long 
breath.  "Too  lovely  to  stay  indoors.  I'll  go 
to  see  Mary  some  stormy  afternoon  when  she 
needs  cheering  up." 

And  now  that  her  decision  was  made,  the 
thought  of  Mary  Donaldson  passed  completely 


24  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

from  Peggy's  mind.  She  had  never  been  par- 
ticularly intimate  with  this  class-mate,  and  had 
it  not  been  for  Mary's  illness  it  is  unlikely 
that  the  two  girls  would  have  seen  much  of  each 
other  after  high  school  days.  But  the  winter  of 
Peggy's  Freshman  year,  an  attack  of  rheu- 
matism had  left  Mary  seriously  crippled. 
Though  now  she  was  able  to  be  dressed  and  to 
hobble  from  her  bed  to  a  chair  by  the  window, 
getting  downstairs  was  too  difficult  a  process 
to  be  considered,  except  on  very  especial  oc- 
casions. With  all  the  yearnings  for  life  and 
joy  that  characterize  the  normal  girl,  Mary 
was  condemned  to  vibrate  between  her  bed  and 
chair. 

It  was  not  strange  that  with  all  her  sym- 
pathy Peggy  had  found  it  difficult  to  see  much 
of  her  invalid  friend.  The  demands  made  by 
the  war  upon  the  scanty  leisure  of  a  college 
student  left  her  little  time  she  could  call  her 
own.  She  had  worked  making  surgical  dress- 
ings under  the  Red  Cross,  and  had  given  much 
time  to  collecting  and  mending  worn  garments 
for  the  destitute  children  of  Belgium  and 
France.  She  had  subscribed  for  a  bond  in  each 


A  TELEPHONE  PARTY  25 

of  the  Government  loans,  and  to  pay  for  these 
with  her  own  earnings  had  required  hard  work 
and  careful  financing.  On  the  whole,  though 
Peggy  was  sorry  not  to  have  seen  more  of 
Mary  Donaldson,  her  conscience  acquitted  her 
of  neglect. 

The  season  wras  advanced  and  the  girls  had 
no  difficulty  in  filling  their  baskets  with  the 
early  arrivals  among  the  wild  flowers,  and  as 
their  baskets  filled,  they  feasted  their  eyes  on 
the  myriad  indeterminate  shades  of  a  spring 
landscape,  and  drank  in  the  exhilarating  odors 
of  damp  earth,  warmed  by  the  April  sun. 
When  Peggy's  wrist-watch  warned  them  it  was 
time  to  start  for  home,  they  went  reluctantly, 
with  an  unreasonable  feeling  that  in  returning 
to  town  they  were  leaving  the  spring  behind 
them. 

At  their  transfer  point  a  sign  in  a  drug  store 
window  caught  Amy's  eye.  "Ice  cream  soda 
with  fresh  fruit,"  she  read  impressively.  "I 
wondered  what  it  was  I  wanted.  I've  lost  a 
pound  and  a  half  since  vacation  began,  so  I 
dare  to  risk  one." 

"I   haven't   been   buying   sodas,   because   I 


26  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

needed  the  money  for  something  else,"  said 
Peggy.  "But  this  is  the  last  day  of  vacation 
and  I  believe  I'll  celebrate." 

They  filed  in  and  gave  their  orders.  Peggy 
had  just  taken  the  first  sip  of  a  ravishing  con- 
coction, whose  formula  would  have  given  a 
dyspeptic  heart-failure,  when  at  the  opposite 
counter  she  spied  a  stout,  middle-aged  woman 
who  was  regarding  her  with  savage  intentness. 
Her  features  were  familiar,  in  spite  of  a  look 
of  hostility  Peggy  was  not  accustomed  to  see 
on  the  faces  that  looked  in  her  direction. 

For  some  minutes  Peggy  was  frankly 
puzzled.  Not  till  she  was  finishing  her  soda 
did  she  remember  where  she  had  seen  that 
heavy,  lowering  face  before.  But  with  the 
recollection,  she  slipped  from  her  stool  and 
crossed  to  the  opposite  side  of  the  room. 

"I've  been  trying  to  think  where  I've  seen 
you  before,  but  now  I  remember.  You're  the 
Miss  Potts  who  takes  care  of  Mary  Donald- 
son, aren't  you!" 

Rather  ungraciously  Miss  Potts  admitted  her 
identity.  She  was  not  a  trained  nurse,  for  in 
Mary 's  case  skilled  hands  were  no  longer  neces- 


A  TELEPHONE  PARTY  27 

sary.  Miss  Potts  was  big  and  strong  and  kind 
of  heart,  though  at  the  moment  her  expression 
was  far  from  suggesting  the  latter  character- 
istic. A  little  puzzled  by  the  woman 's  manner, 
Peggy  continued,  "I've  been  wanting  to  see 
Mary  for  ever  so  long.  How  is  she  f ' ' 

''Well,  she  ain't  doing  very  well,  and  no  won- 
der. Old  folks  get  kind  of  used  to  the  way 
things  are  in  this  world,  and  it  doesn't  surprise 
'em  none  to  be  forgotten.  But  it's  sort  of  hard 
on  the  young. ' ' 

Peggy  flushed  hotly.  She  realized  that  Miss 
Potts'  disagreeable  manner  was  a  deliberate 
expression  of  resentment.  "I'm  sorry  that  I 
haven't  been  able  to  see  more  of  Mary  this 
last  year,"  she  said  with  gentle  dignity,  "but 
I've  been  very  busy,  and  it's  such  a  long  way 
over  here." 

"I  s'pose  it's  a  long  way  to  your  telephone, 
too." 

"Telephone!"  Peggy  repeated.  She  looked 
at  Miss  Potts  so  blankly  that  Mary's  care- 
taker had  no  alternative  but  to  explain. 

"Her  pa  had  it  put  in  for  a  surprise.  It's 
right  beside  her  bed,  and  the  little  thing  it 


28  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

stands  on  moves  'round,  so  she  can  talk  with- 
out any  trouble.  He  thought  it  would  be  a 
comfort  to  her,  for  she  could  chat  with  all 
her  friends,  and  sort  of  keep  up  with 
things. ' ' 

''Why,  yes,"  said  Peggy,  feeling  uncomfor- 
table. "I  should  think  she'd  get  lots  of  fun 
out  of  it."  She  was  remembering  that  Mary 
had  called  her  up — it  was  weeks  or  months,  or 
was  it  fully  a  year  before — to  tell  her  about 
the  new  telephone.  There  had  been  an  eager- 
ness in  Mary's  voice  that  she  remembered  viv- 
idly. Peggy  had  agreed  that  it  was  "splen- 
did," without  realizing  just  what  this  link  with 
the  outside  world  would  mean  to  a  girl  shut  out 
from  so  much. 

Miss  Potts  indulged  in  an  unmusical  laugh. 
"Oh,  yes,"  she  said.  "She  gets  lots  of  fun. 
Every  now  and  then  she  gets  a  call.  There's 
so  many  new  girls  on  the  telephone  exchanges 
nowadays,  that  they're  bound  to  give  her  num- 
ber every  little  while.  And  then  she  tells  'em 
it 's  the  wrong  number  and  rings  off. ' ' 

Peggy's  face  was  a  study.  "Do  you  mean 
that  she — that  no  one — " 


A  TELEPHONE  PARTY  29 

The  aggressiveness  suddenly  disappeared 
from  Miss  Potts'  manner.  Her  eyes  filled  with 
tears. 

' '  It 's  the  heart-breakingest  thing  I  ever  want 
to  see,"  she  cried.  "She  was  so  hopeful  at 
first.  As  soon  as  that  telephone  was  put  in,  she 
called  up  everybody  she  knew,  to  tell  'em  about 
it.  And  then  she'd  lie  there  smiling,  watch- 
ing that  phone,  as  if  it  was  something  out  of 
a  fairy  book  and  was  going  to  bring  her  all 
kinds  of  happiness." 

Peggy's  imagination  was  a  vivid  one.  As 
Miss  Potts  spoke,  she  could  almost  see  Mary's 
smiling,  expectant  face.  A  pang  of  sympathy 
stabbed  her  tender  heart. 

"The  very  first  time  that  telephone  rang  it 
was  somebody  that  wanted  the  butcher;  and 
the  second  time,  a  girl,  who  was  coming  over 
to  spend  the  afternoon  with  her,  rang  up  to  say 
her  aunt  was  in  town  and  she  was  going  to  the 
matinee  instead.  I  don't  think  Mary  ever  felt 
the  same  about  her  phone  after  that  start-out. 
When  it  rang,  she  looked  kind  of  scared,  as  if 
she  was  afraid  she  was  going  to  hear  something 
disappointing." 


30  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"But  surely,"  Peggy  exclaimed,  "she  must 
have  lots  of  calls  from  her  friends.  I — why, 
I  know  I  haven't  called  very  often,  but  that 
was  because  I  was  always  hoping  to  get  time 
to  go  over  to  see  her."  There  was  such  gen- 
uine distress  in  her  voice  that  Miss  Potts  was 
visibly  melted. 

"It's  a  busy  world,"  she  said,  "for  young 
folks  and  old  folks,  too,  and  I  guess  on  the 
whole  it's  lucky  it  is  so  easy  for  us  to  forget. 
But  all  the  same,"  she  ended,  with  a  shake  of 
her  head,  "it's  pretty  hard  on  the  ones  who 
get  forgotten." 

The  clerk  brought  out  the  prescription  for 
which  Miss  Potts  had  been  waiting,  and  Peggy 
rejoined  her  friends.  For  a  moment  she  con- 
sidered sending  her  flowers  to  Mary,  but  a  fear 
that  to  Miss  Potts  this  might  seem  an  effort 
to  evade  a  more  exacting  expression  of  sympa- 
thy led  her  to  relinquish  her  purpose.  Her 
crest-fallen  manner  revealed  that  something 
was  wrong,  and  as  they  left  the  drug  store 
her  friends  resentfully  demanded  an  explana- 
tion. 

"Peggy,  what  was  that  woman  saying  to 


A  TELEPHONE  PARTY  31 

you  1 ' '  Priscilla  was  bristling  like  a  mother  hen 
who  sees  one  of  her  brood  attacked. 

In  a  few  words  Peggy  explained.  Her 
three  listeners  exchanged  conscience-stricken 
glances. 

"It  seems  rather  mean  that  you  should  be 
the  one  to  be  scolded,"  said  Amy,  "when  you 
have  gone  to  see  Mary  oftener  than  all  the 
three  of  us  together.'7 

"That  isn't  saying  much,"  Peggy  stated 
gloomily.  "I  haven't  been  near  her  for 
months. ' ' 

"But  you  haven't  had  time,"  cried  Ruth, 
slipping  her  hand  through  her  friend's 
arm. 

"No,  I  think  I  really  haven't,"  Peggy  said 
frankly.  "But  I  certainly  have  had  time  to  go 
to  the  telephone."  Then  suddenly  her  face 
brightened.  * '  I  know  what  we  '11  do,  girls ;  we  '11 
give  her  a  telephone  party." 

"A"  telephone  party,"  Amy  repeated. 
"What  do  you  mean  by  that?"  The  car  for 
which  they  were  waiting  came  along  before 
Peggy  could  answer,  and  she  finished  her  ex- 
planation hanging  to  a  strap,  while  her  three 


32  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

companions,  similarly  supported  and  swaying 
violently  with  each  jerk  of  the  car,  listened  ab- 
sorbedly. 

4 'College  opens  to-morrow,  and  the  first  day 
is  never  so  very  busy,  so  we'll  call  Mary  up 
every  hour.  My  hour  will  be  between  nine  and 
ten.  Priscilla,  you  take  the  hour  between  ten 
and  eleven;  and  Amy,  you  can  have  the  next 
one.  I  think  we'd  better  omit  the  hour  between 
twelve  and  one,  for  she'll  probably  be  eating 
luncheon  then.  Euth,  you  may  call  between 
one  and  two." 

"But  you  said  every  hour,  Peggy.  Don't 
you  think  it  would  be  rather  over-doing  it  to 
call  twice  in  one  day?" 

"I'm  going  to  get  hold  of  some  of  the  other 
girls  who  were  in  Mary's  class  in  high  school, 
Elinor  Hewitt,  and  Anna  Joyce,  and  Blanche 
Eastabrook — " 

"She's  in  New  York." 

"Well,  Marian  O'Neil  isn't.  And  I'll  see 
Aimee  Dubois  at  college  and  tell  her  about  it. 
Mary's  telephone  is  going  to  work  overtime  to 
make  up  for  its  long  idleness." 

"What  I  don't  understand,"  said  Priscilla, 


A  TELEPHONE  PARTY  33 

"is  if  Mary  was  so  lonely,  why  didn't  she  call 
us  up  ? " 

"I  can  understand  that  easy  enough,"  replied 
Peggy.  "She  called  us  up  to  tell  us  >she  had  a 
phone,  and  after  that,  it  was  our  move." 

"And  I  suppose,"  suggested  Amy,  "that 
there  isn't  a  great  deal  to  talk  about,  when 
you  don't  get  out  of  an  upstairs  room  from 
one  month  to  another." 

"I  suppose  not,"  Priscilla  acknowledged. 
Everything  considered,  it  was  a  rather  crest- 
fallen quartette  of  girls  who  returned  from 
their  afternoon's  outing. 

It  was  just  half  past  nine  next  day  when 
Mary  Donaldson's  telephone  rang.  "I'm  not 
too  early,  am  I?"  said  a  cheery  voice. 

Mary,  who  had  taken  up  the  receiver  with 
the  air  of  uncertainty  to  which  Miss  Potts  had 
referred,  uttered  a  joyful  exclamation.  "Why, 
it's  Peggy  Eaymond!" 

"Yes,  it's  Peggy.  I  wanted  to  tell  you 
about  something  perfectly  killing  that  happened 
to  Amy  the  other  day."  Peggy  had  made  up 
her  mind  to  ignore  the  months  of  silence.  Ex- 
planations would  not  help  matters,  for  nothing 


34  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

could  explain  away  the  fact  that  in  the  whirl  and 
rush  of  their  over-full  lives  they  had,  for  the 
time  being,  quite  forgotten  Mary. 

The  story  of  Amy 's  impromptu  dinner  party 
proved  as  entertaining  as  Peggy  had  antici- 
pated. Mary  Donaldson  laughed  as  she  had 
not  laughed  for  months.  And  in  the  next  room 
Miss  Potts,  listening,  made  strange  grimaces 
that  seemed  only  distantly  related  to  smiles. 
When  the  story  was  finished,  Mary  had  some 
questions  to  ask.  "Who  are  the  Careys? 
There  used  to  be  a  Carey  girl  in  school — " 

"I'm  pretty  sure  they  aren't  related  to  her. 
They  come  from  some  place  in  New  York  and 
they've  lived  in  our  neighborhood  less  than  a 
year.  And  do  you  know,  Mary,  we  think  Amy 
must  have  made  quite  an  impression  on  the 
brother — Bob.  He's  called  on  her  twice  since, 
and  he's  asked  her  to  go  to  the  Glee  Club  con- 
cert." 

"He  has!"  Romance  dies  hard  in  the  heart 
of  a  girl.  Poor  Mary,  shut  away  from  con- 
tact with  young  life,  was  thrilled  by  the  sugges- 
tion of  an  incipient  love-story.  "Is  he  nice 
looking?"  she  asked  eagerly. 


A  TELEPHONE  PARTY  35 

"Well,  I've  not  met  him  yet,  but  I've  noticed 
him  passing  several  times,  and  I  thought  he 
was  quite  handsome.  And  Hildegarde  is  an 
awfully  stylish  girl,  though  I'd  hardly  call  her 
pretty. ' ' 

In  ten  minutes  Peggy  announced  that  she 
must  go  to  a  history  lecture  and  rang  off.  She 
was  smiling  as  she  went  to  class,  and  wishing 
she  could  be  an  unseen  listener  to  the  conversa- 
tions scheduled  to  take  place  in  Mary's  room 
every  hour  in  the  day. 

As  Peggy  had  promised,  the  bell  of  Mary's 
telephone  worked  over-time.  The  Friendly 
Terrace  girls  were  supplemented  by  former 
school-mates  in  sufficient  numbers  to  keep  up 
the  excitement  till  half  past  eight  that  evening. 
Most  of  the  girls,  whose  memories  Peggy  had 
undertaken  to  jolt,  were  conscience-stricken 
when  they  realized  how  they  had  neglected 
Mary.  And  they  readily  fell  in  with  Peggy's 
suggestion. 

' '  Even  if  we  can 't  get  over  there  very  often, ' ' 
urged  Peggy, ' '  we  can  use  the  telephone.  Five 
minutes  talk  every  few  days  will  make  Mary 
feel  that  she's  in  touch  with  us  still.  It  doesn't 


36  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY" 

seem  to  me  I  could  bear  feeling  forgotten." 
Peggy  did  not  realize  that,  even  with  Mary's 
disability,  she  would  have  made  herself  the  cen- 
ter of  some  circle ;  and  in  her  failure  to  under- 
stand that  Mary's  rather  colorless  personality 
was  in  part  responsible  for  what  had  happened, 
Peggy  was  the  more  severe  upon  herself  for 
what  now  seemed  to  her  inexplicable  and  inex- 
cusable neglect. 

Thanks  to  the  sudden  activity  of  Peggy's 
conscience,  Mary  Donaldson  heard  more  out- 
side news  in  one  day  than  she  had  heard  in  the 
three  months  previous.  And  as  the  trouble 
with  most  young  people  is  want  of  thought, 
rather  than  want  of  heart,  few  of  the  girls  were 
satisfied  with  chatting  five  or  ten  minutes  over 
the  telephone.  They  promised  to  come  to  see 
her  soon.  They  offered  to  lend  her  books  or 
mail  her  magazines.  One  girl  suggested  that 
she  would  bring  over  some  of  her  victrola 
records  for  Mary  to  hear,  and  another  informed 
her  that  as  soon  as  the  lilies  of  the  valley  were 
out  she  should  have  a  cluster.  All  at  once 
Mary  Donaldson's  friends  were  remembering 
her  in  earnest. 


A  TELEPHONE  PARTY  37 

When  Marian  O'Neil  rang  off  at  twenty 
minutes  of  nine,  Mary  hesitated  a  moment  and 
then  called  Peggy  Raymond.  And  Peggy  who 
was  giving  her  studies  that  half-hearted  atten- 
tion customary  on  the  first  day  after  vaca- 
tion, whether  the  student  is  in  the  primary 
grade  or  a  college  Junior,  came  running  down- 
stairs when  Dick  shouted  her  name. 

"Hello— Hello— Why,  Mary!"  The  pleas- 
ure in  her  tone  was  unmistakable,  and  the  shut- 
in,  two  miles  away,  thrilled  responsively. 

"Peggy,  I  just  wanted  to  tell  you  before  I 
went  to  sleep  that  I've  had  such  a  lovely  day." 

"Have  you,  dear?  I'm  glad.  What  hap- 
pened?" 

The  question  took  the  guileless  Mary  aback. 
"I  thought  perhaps  you  knew  something  about 
it.  My  telephone  has  been  ringing  all  day.  It 
was  queer  if  it  was  only  a  coincidence,  for 
some  girls  called  me  up  that  I  haven't  heard 
from  for  years." 

"Must  have  been  what  they  call  a  brain 
wave,"  suggested  Peggy,  audaciously. 

"Well,  anyway,  it  was  nice.  I've  heard  so 
many  things  and  talked  with  so  many  peo- 


38  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

pie  that  I  feel  as  if  I'd  been  to  a  party. " 
"If  that's  all,  Mary,  I'll  prophesy  there'll  be 

just  as  nice  days  coming  as  this." 

"Oh,  do  you  think  so,   Peggy!     Well,  it's 

my  bed  time  now,  so  I  won't  talk  any  longer. 

Good-night." 
"Good-night!"    And  as  Peggy  hung  up  the 

receiver,  she  reflected  that  she  had  never  done 

justice  to  the  possibilities  of  the  telephone. 


CHAPTER  III 

A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART 

IT  was  one  of  those  warm,  summer-like  days 
of  early  June,  when  lessons  and  college 
classes  are  forgotten  in  the  enjoyment  of 
thoughts  of  the  summer  vacation  to  come. 
Such  a  few  days  left,  and  the  four  girls  would 
be  free  for  all  the  reading  and  the  tennis  and 
the  sewing  and  the  tramping  which  the  press 
of  examination  preparation  had  forced  aside. 
And  they  would  all  be  together  again  this  sum- 
mer, which  gave  promise  of  many  Quartette 
larks.  The  day  was  so  perfect  that  all  four  had, 
as  if  of  one  mind,  discarded  their  lessons  for 
the  remainder  of  the  day,  and  had  drifted  over 
to  Amy's. 

"Do  you  know  what  I've  been  thinking  about 
all  week?"  demanded  Amy  of  the  trio  occupy- 
ing her  front  porch.  She  did  not  wait  for  any 
of  them  to  hazard  a  guess,  but  gave  the  answer 
herself,  " Strawberries." 

39 


40  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

_^^__^^_^___^^__^_^_i 

A  soft  little  murmur  went  the  rounds.  "We 
had  strawberries  for  dinner  last  night,"  said 
Peggy,  "the  best  I've  tasted  this  year." 

"And  we  had  strawberry  short-cake."  Pris- 
cilla  smacked  her  lips  reminiscently. 

"And  I  had  some  strawberry  ice  cream  at 
Birds',"  put  in  Ruth.  "It  was  so  warm  along 
about  nine  o'clock,  you  know,  and  Nelson  and 
I  went  down.  My,  but  it  was  good!" 

Amy  listened  unmoved.  "What  I've  been 
thinking  about,"  she  explained,  "is  strawber- 
ries in  the  patch,  sticking  their  heads  out  from 
under  the  leaves,  as  if  they  were  begging  to  be 
picked,  warm  from  the  sun,  and  sweet,  and  just 
spilling  over  with  juice." 

The  girls  sat  attentive.  Something  in  Amy 's 
manner  indicated  that  there  was  a  background 
of  reality  for  this  flight  of  fancy. 

"I've  got  a  sort  of  relation  living  about  ten 
miles  out  of  town,"  Amy  continued.  "Aunt 
Phoebe  Cummings,  only  that  isn't  her  name. 
Five  years  ago  she  married  a  man  named 
Frost." 

'  *  How  interesting  to  get  a  new  uncle  at  your 
age,"  interjected  Euth. 


A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART  41 

"I  don't  regard  him  as  much  of  an  addi- 
tion to  the  family,"  retorted  Amy  drily. 
11  When  I  talk  about  him,  I  call  him,  'Uncle 
Philander-Behind-His-Back.'  But  to  his  face, 
he's  Mr.  Frost.  You  see,  Aunt  Phoebe  isn't 
exactly  an  aunt.  I  believe  she's  a  second 
cousin  of  my  grandfather 's  first  wife,  but  she 's 
nicer  than  lots  of  real  aunts." 

"I  do  think  you  have  the  nicest  relations, 
Amy  Lassell."  interposed  Peggy.  "Now  Aunt 
Abigail,  at  Doolittle  cottage,  was  a  perfect 
dear. ' ' 

Priscilla  showed  signs  of  impatience.  "What 
has  all  this  to  do  with  strawberries?" 

"Well,  I'm  coming  to  that.  My  Uncle  Phil- 
ander-Behind-His-Back owns  a  little  farm,  and 
they've  got  strawberries  to  burn.  And  almost 
every  year  Aunt  Phoebe  says  she  wishes  I'd 
come  out  when  the  strawberries  are  ripe  and 
bring  some  of  my  friends." 

"Amy  Lassell!"  exclaimed  Priscilla  re- 
proachfully. "Do  you  mean  that  Mrs.  Philan- 
der has  been  begging  you  to  do  this  for  the 
last  five  years,  and  that  this  is  the  first  we've 
heard  of  it?" 


42  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"Well,  as  a  rule  she  mentions  it  along  about 
August,  or  October,  and  I  forget  it  by  June. 
But  she  came  in  town  to  shop  the  other  day 
and  took  dinner  with  us,  and  when  she  left, 
she  broached  the  subject  again.  She  said  the 
strawberries  would  be  at  their  best  by  the 
middle  of  next  week  and  she'd  love  to  meet 
you  all.  What -do  you  think  of  a  trip  to  the 
country  along  about  Wednesday?" 

There  were  certain  subjects  regarding  which, 
in  spite  of  their  devoted  friendship,  the 
Friendly  Terrace  quartette  could  develop  con- 
siderable diversity  of  opinion.  But  on  this  oc- 
casion, their  unanimity  would  have  gratified 
the  hospitable  instincts  of  Amy's  Aunt  Phoe- 
be. Strawberries  boxed  and  displayed  in  show 
windows,  or  even  transformed  into  such  delica- 
cies as  short  cake  and  ice  cream,  seemed  pro- 
saic all  at  once.  What  they  wanted  was  to  be 
turned  loose  in  a  strawberry  patch,  to  stain 
their  fingers  plucking  the  strawberries  from 
the  vines.  Before  leaving  the  porch  the  girls 
watched  Amy  pen  a  note  to  her  relative,  ac- 
cepting her  oft-repeated  invitation  in  behalf 
of  herself  and  friends,  and  suggesting  the  fol- 


A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART  43 

lowing  Wednesday  as  a  desirable  time  for  their 
visit. 

A  rather  cloudy  Tuesday  awakened  anxious 
apprehensions  in  the  minds  of  the  four  girls, 
apprehensions  dissipated,  however,  by  the 
cloudless  dawn  of  Wednesday.  The  height  of 
the  strawberry  season  is  the  most  charming 
time  of  the  year.  The  four  ate  an  early  lunch- 
eon at  Peggy's  home,  and  then  took  the  trol- 
ley for  the  outskirts  of  the  city.  Once  outside 
the  city,  the  trolley  car  bowled  along  at  an  ex- 
hilarating pace,  and  in  spite  of  the  prospects 
ahead,  the  girls  were  almost  sorry  when  the 
ten-miles  were  up,  and  the  breezy  ride  was 
ended. 

Aunt  Phoebe  was  a  little  old  lady  whose  black 
skirt  was  quaintly  full  and  showed  signs  of 
wear,  partially  concealed  by  a  white  ruffled 
apron  of  unusual  size.  She  greeted  them  as 
affectionately  as  if  they  had  all  been  nieces  by 
adoption,  and  conducted  them  indoors  to  take 
off  their  hats.  The  living  room  through  which 
they  passed  was  large  and  pleasantly  and  im- 
maculately neat,  the  unpainted  floor  having 
been  scrubbed  to  a  milky  whiteness. 


44  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

The  tapping  of  the  girls '  heels  on  the  boards 
emphasized  their  bareness.  '  *  Got  your  rugs  up 
for  the  summer,  I  see,"  remarked  Amy  casu- 
ally. The  comment  was  natural  enough  under 
the  circumstances,  but  unluckily  it  opened  the 
door  of  the  closet  which  contained  the  Frosts' 
family  skeleton.  Aunt  Phoebe  reddened  as  if 
Amy's  innocent  remark  had  been  a  slap  in  the 
face.  "My  sitting  room  carpet's  worn  out," 
she  said.  "It  was  worn  out  when  I  came  here. 
I  patched  it  and  I  pieced  it  and  I  made  it  last 
a  good  three  years  after  anybody  else  would 
have  put  it  in  the  rags,  and  now  he  says  there  's 
no  sense  buying  a  new  one." 

"Mr.  Frost,  you  mean?" 

"Yes.  He's  got  awful  queer  notions,  Phil- 
ander has.  He  talks  about  bare  floors  being 
healthy.  Good  gracious!  It  gives  me  a  chill 
to  think  of  this  room  in  November  without  a 
carpet  on  the  floor.  I've  done  without  lots 
of  things  in  my  life,  but  I  never  was  too  poor 
to  have  my  floors  carpeted." 

Amy  was  sorry  she  had  broached  the  subject, 
for  now  that  Aunt  Phoebe  was  started,  she 
seemed  to  find  it  difficult  to  stop  talking  about 


A  TRIUMPH  OP  ART  45 

her  grievance.  Like  many  people  who  do  not 
ask  a  great  deal  of  life,  she  was  the  more  insis- 
tent regarding  the  few  things  she  counted  es- 
sential. The  bare  floor,  echoing  noisily  under 
the  tread  of  her  guests,  stirred  her  indigna- 
tion and  almost  spoiled  her  childlike  satisfac- 
tion in  entertaining  Amy  and  her  friends. 

But  worse  was  coming.  It  appeared  that 
Aunt  Phoebe  had  a  heaped  glass  dish  of  berries 
to  be  served  in  the  conventional  fashion  with 
sugar  and  cream,  but  she  suggested  that  first 
the  girls  might  enjoy  helping  themselves  from 
the  patch.  As  this  was  really  what  they  had 
come  for,  they  acquiesced  heartily,  and  Aunt 
Phoebe  led  the  way.  Her  kindly  old  face  lost 
its  pensiveness  as  she  watched  the  laughing 
girls  picking  the  berries  from  the  vines,  their 
lips  and  fingers  reddening  as  the  feast  pro- 
ceeded. Then  without  any  warning,  a  deep 
voice  spoke  out  of  the  shrubbery,  and  only  too 
much  to  the  point.  "The  commission  men," 
said  the  voice,  "are  paying  twelve  cents  a  box 
for  them  strawberries." 

Four  berry-pickers  straightened  themselves 
and  looked  at  one  another  aghast.  Aunt 


46  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Phoebe  rushed  furiously  to  their  defense. 
"Philander  Frost,  this  is  my  niece,  Amy 
Lassell,  and  she's  brought  out  some  young 
friends  to  eat  strawberries,  because  I  asked  her 
to."  Her  faded  blue  eyes  emitted  electric 
sparks  as  she  defied  him. 

"Pleased  to  meet  you,  I'm  sure,"  said  Mr. 
Frost,  still  with  an  air  of  profound  melancholy. 
"I  don't  grudge  a  few  strawberries  any  more 
than  the  next  man,  but  with  them  bringing 
twelve  cents  a  box — " 

"Philander!"  The  little  wrinkled  wife  was 
fairly  beside  herself  with  mortification.  Her 
withered  skin,  suffused  by  a  burning  blush, 
rivalled  the  vivid  coloring  of  youth.  "Phil- 
ander, I  don't  care  if  the  strawberries  are  a 
dollar  a  quart — " 

"Oh,  well,"  said  Mr.  Frost  patiently.  "I 
just  thought  I  'd  mention  it. ' '  He  turned  away 
while  four  girls  stood  motionless  in  the  straw- 
berry patch,  as  if  there  had  been  a  Medusa-like 
quality  in  his  gaze,  turning  them  all  to  stone. 

"Go  right  on,  dearies,"  commanded  Aunt 
Phoebe,  raising  her  voice  defiantly,  so  that  it 
should  reach  the  ears  of  her  departing  lord  and 


A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART  47 

master.  "Eat  all  you  want  to."  But  though 
as  a  matter  of  principle,  the  girls  attempted  to 
obey,  the  sweetness  had  gone  from  the  luscious 
fruit.  They  ate  half-heartedly,  ashamed  to 
meet  one  another's  eyes,  calculating,  in  spite  of 
themselves,  how  much  Mr.  Frost  was  out  of 
pocket  because  of  their  visit. 

Aunt  Phoebe  was  plainly  disappointed  when 
they  declared  that  they  had  had  enough.  She 
tried  to  encourage  them  to  think  better  of  it, 
and  when  they  still  insisted,  led  the  way  to  the 
house.  "I  don't  think  much  of  strawberries 
without  trimmings,  myself,"  she  declared  over 
her  shoulder.  "When  you  taste  them  with 
sugar  and  cream,  I  guess  you'll  find  your  ap- 
petites coming  back." 

The  porch  at  the  side  of  the  house  was  shaded 
and  inviting.  Aunt  Phoebe  insisted  on  their 
seating  themselves,  while  she  waited  on  them. 
Against  the  snowy  covering  of  the  small,  round 
table,  the  big  dish  of  choice  berries  made  a  fine 
showing.  Then  Aunt  Phoebe  brought  out  a 
pitcher  of  rich  yellow  cream,  and  the  spirits 
of  the  crest-fallen  group  began  to  revive. 
The  appearance  of  a  heaping  plate-full  of 


48  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

cookies  was  hailed  with  appreciative   smiles. 

"Plenty  more  cookies  in  the  jar,"  said  Aunt 
Phoebe,  helping  them  with  lavish  hand.  "And 
plenty  more  berries.  Eat  all  you  can." 

They  had  almost  reached  the  point  of 
forgetting  Mr.  Frost  and  his  discomforting 
comments,  when  he  again  made  his  appearance. 
Peggy  lost  the  thread  of  the  story  she  was 
telling  and  stopped  short,  but  as  no  one  was 
listening,  that  made  no  difference. 

Mr.  Frost  seated  himself  and  sighed  heavily. 
"Some  folks  is  afraid  to  eat  too  many  straw- 
berries," he  said.  "They're  likely  to  cause  a 
rash. ' ' 

The  girls,  not  knowing  what  to  say,  went  on 
eating  mechanically.  Aunt  Phoebe,  however, 
straightened  herself  over  her  saucer.  "I  don't 
mind  a  rash,"  she  announced,  "not  in  such  a 
good  cause." 

"It  ain't  that  I  care  for  the  expense,"  Mr. 
Frost  said  feelingly,  "though  of  course,  with 
the  cost  of  living  so  high,  sensible  folks  ought 
to  do  without  everything  that  ain't  necessary. 
Now  Phoebe's  got  an  idea  that  she  wants  a 
new  carpet  for  the  sitting  room — " 


A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART  49 

"  I've  got  an  idea  that  I  'm  going  to  have  one, 
too,"  said  Aunt  Phoebe,  breathing  hard. 

"I  tell  her  that  bare  floors  is  all  the  rage," 
said  Mr.  Frost,  looking  from  one  to  another  of 
the  girls,  as  if  he  hoped  to  find  an  ally  in  one 
of  them.  ''Carpets  are  hiding-places  for  all 
sorts  of  germs.  The  swellest  folks  there  is 
have  bare  floors  nowadays,  I  tell  her." 

''I  guess  their  bare  floors  don't  look  much 
like  mine,"  exploded  Aunt  Phoebe,  "just  com- 
mon pine  boards,  not  even  painted." 

"I  wouldn't  mind  letting  you  paint  'em," 
said  Mr.  Frost.  "Of  course  paint  is  very  ex- 
pensive these  days,  but  if  it  would  make  you 
feel  any  better — " 

' '  What  I  want, ' '  Aunt  Phoebe  was  beginning 
wrathfully,  when  Amy  interrupted.  She  ad- 
dressed herself  to  Mr.  Frost,  and  her  manner 
was  propitiatory.  "A  painted  floor  isn't  so 
bad,"  she  said.  "Lots  of  folks  have  painted 
floors." 

"A  body's  feet  would  freeze  in  winter,"  ex- 
claimed Aunt  Phoebe,  plainly  bewildered  at 
Amy's  taking  sides  against  her. 

"You  want  to  wear  good  thick  shoes  and 


50  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

stockings,"  replied  Mr.  Frost,  eyeing  Amy  ap- 
provingly. His  manner  indicated  that  as  far 
as  she  was  concerned,  he  did  not  grudge  the 
strawberries. 

"I  was  going  to  say,"  continued  Amy,  re- 
turning his  friendly  gaze  with  interest,  "that 
I  wouldn't  mind  coming  out  and  painting  the 
floors  for  you  some  day." 

The  other  Friendly  Terrace  girls  looked  at 
one  another  in  surprise.  They  could  not 
understand  Amy.  Apparently  she  was  trying 
to  curry  favor  with  Mr.  Frost  by  taking  sides 
with  him  against  Aunt  Phoebe,  yet  none  of 
them  considered  this  the  real  explanation. 
Whatever  her  intention,  it  was  plain  that  Amy 
had  made  a  conquest  of  Uncle  Philander-Be- 
hind-His-Back.  For  the  rest  of  their  stay,  he 
addressed  most  Ms  remarks  to  her,  and  though 
his  conversation  dealt  largely  with  the  high  cost 
of  living  and  the  necessity  for  thrift,  their  inex- 
plicable friend  seemed  highly  edified. 

When  they  took  their  departure,  Mr.  Frost 
again  brought  up  the  subject  of  the  floor.  "If 
you  should  happen  to  feel  like  painting  it  some 
day—" 


A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART  51 

"Oh,  I'm  coming,"  said  Amy  smiling  up  at 
him.  "I'll  get  the  other  girls  to  help  me,  and 
we  '11  make  short  work  of  it. ' ' 

"I  think  I've  got  pretty  near  enough  paint 
left  from  painting  the  barn — " 

Aunt  Phoebe's  accession  of  color  suggested 
an  attack  of  apoplexy,  for  the  barn  was  the 
color  of  a  ripe  pumpkin.  Amy  hastily  inter- 
posed, "Oh,  I'll  bring  the  paint." 

"Will  you  now?  Well,  I  call  that  the  right 
spirit.  I  like  to  see  young  folks  appreciative," 
declared  Mr.  Frost.  "Strawberries  are  bring- 
ing a  good  price  this  year,  but  I'm  sure  you're 
welcome  to  every  one  you  et." 

On  the  way  to  the  car  Amy  walked  beside 
Aunt  Phoebe,  holding  fast  to  her  arm  and  chat- 
tering like  a  magpie.  And  as  she  kissed  the  old 
lady  good-by,  she  pulled  her  close  and  whis- 
pered in  her  ear.  It  was  impossible  to  know 
what  she  said,  but  Aunt  Phoebe's  lugubrious 
countenance  showed  an  immediate  improve- 
ment. She  stared  at  Amy  with  an  expression 
of  incredulity  which  presently  became  a  be- 
wildered smile. 

The  uncertainty  of  the  other  Friendly  Ter- 


52  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

race  girls,  as  to  whether  or  not  Amy  had  in- 
tended her  promise  to  be  taken  literally,  was 
dissipated  about  a  week  later  when  she  called 
on  them  to  accompany  her  and  assist  in  the 
painting  of  Aunt  Phoebe's  sitting-room  floor. 
Thoughtlessly  Amy  had  selected  a  date  when 
Peggy  had  an  imperative  engagement.  Peggy 
urged  her  to  choose  another  day,  but  Amy 
found  insuperable  objections  to  a  change. 

"But  I  don't  like  this,"  said  Peggy.  "I  ate 
as  many  strawberries  as  anybody,  and  if  you  're 
painting  the  floor  to  pay  your  uncle  Philander- 
Behind-His-Back,  I  want  to  do  my  share." 
And  to  this,  Amy  replied  imperturbably  that 
she  need  not  worry,  for  Uncle  Philander-Be- 
hind-His-Back  would  be  paid  in  full,  without 
her  assistance. 

"It  really  is  a  pity  Peggy  couldn't  come." 
The  trio  was  fairly  on  its  way.  "She  knows 
more  about  such  work  than  any  of  us." 

"I'm  afraid  Peggy  wouldn't  be  much  of  a 
help  to-day,"  replied  Amy. 

"Peggy  not  a  help?  Why  not?*"  Pris- 
cilla's  manner  indicated  that  if  any  criticism  of 
Peggy  were  implied,  she  would  not  stand  for  it. 


A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART  53 

« Peggy's  conscience  is  such  a  Johnny-on- 
the-spot,"  Amy  explained.  "It  never  seems 
to  take  a  vacation  the  way  ours  do,  and  I'm 
afraid  it  would  be  dreadfully  in  the  way  to- 
day." 

"Why,  what  do  you  mean?"  demanded 
Priscilla  and  Euth  together. 

Amy  opened  the  little  grip  she  carried,  pro- 
duced a  small-sized  can  of  paint  and  handed  it 
to  Priscilla.  A  similar  one  was  bestowed  on 
the  perplexed  Euth,  and  then  Amy  leaned 
back  and  looked  from  one  to  the  other  triumph- 
antly. 

"What  do  you  want  me  to  do  with  it?" 
frowned  Priscilla.  Then  with  a  violent  start, 
"Why,  Amy  Lassell!'" 

"Well?" 

"This  paint  is  moss  green." 

"And  this,"  cried  Euth  excitedly,  "is 
yellow. ' ' 

"And  in  here,"  explained  Amy,  patting  her 
bag  tenderly,  "are  all  the  colors  of  the  rain- 
bow in  half  pint  cans.  Did  you  ever  see  an  ex- 
hibition of  cubist  pictures?" 

"Yes,  once,"  repiled  Priscilla  mechanically, 


54  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

while  Euth  too  amazed  for  words,  stared 
dumbly  at  her  friend. 

"Well,  that  is  the  way  Aunt  Phoebe's  floor  is 
going  to  look  when  we  are  through  with  it." 

"Why,  Amy,"  gasped  Ruth,  suddenly  finding 
her  voice.  "You  can't  do  anything  like  that. 
He  wouldn't  let  you." 

"He  won't  be  there.  I've  arranged  for 
Aunt  Phoebe  to  take  him  off  for  the  day.  The 
key  to  the  house  has  been  left  hanging  on  the 
back  porch." 

"Does  she  know?" 

"She  doesn't,  for  I  thought  it  was  best  for 
her  to  be  able  to  say  she  didn't  know  a  thing 
about  it.  But  she  suspects  that  something's  in 
the  wind." 

Priscilla  hesitated.  "I  suppose  your  idea 
is—" 

"My  idea  is  to  make  such  a  looking  floor  that 
he  will  be  only  too  glad  to  buy  a  carpet  to  cover 
it." 

The  three  girls  looked  at  one  another,  and 
then  Euth  gave  a  little  nervous  giggle.  After 
a  minute  Priscilla  joined  in.  And  then  all 
three  leaned  back  in  the  seats  in  a  paroxysm  of 


A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART  55 

silent  laughter,  while  their  fellow  passengers 
regarded  them  enviously. 

"Well,  I  don't  know  but  you're  right  about 
Peggy,"  admitted  Priscilla,  at  length,  wiping 
her  eyes.  "I'm  pretty  sure  she  would  not  have 
approved. ' ' 

"I  think  it  serves  him  just  right,"  declared 
Euth.  "I  detest  stingy  people." 

It  does  serve  him  right,"  said  Amy.  "He 
has  plenty  of  money,  but  he  hates  to  part  with 
any  of  it.  Poor  Aunt  Phoebe  has  a  little 
money  of  her  own,  and  before  she  married  him 
she  got  no  end  of  fun  out  of  doing  things  for 
other  people.  And  now  the  dear  old  soul  can't 
even  treat  her  friends  to  strawberries  without 
being  humiliated.  Anyway,"  concluded  Amy 
with  decision,  "I'm  bound  she  shall  have  a 
carpet  for  her  living  room  next  winter." 

They  found  the  farm  house  on  the  hill  silent 
and  deserted,  the  back  door  locked,  and  the  key 
hanging  in  such  plain  view  that  it  seemed  an 
invitation  to  enter.  Indoors  they  found  the 
living  room  made  ready  against  their  coming. 
All  the  furniture  had  been  moved  into  ad- 
joining rooms  and  the  floor  had  been  given 


56  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

an   extra    and   quite   unnecessary    scrubbing. 

The  girls  hastily  arrayed  themselves  for  the 
work.  Priscilla  and  Amy  had  brought  along 
the  outfits  they  had  worn  as  farmerettes,  while 
Ruth  donned  a  worn-out  bathing  suit.  Then 
Amy  pried  off  the  covers  of  her  array  of  cans, 
and  presented  each  of  her  friends  with  a  small 
paintbrush.  The  fun  began. 

Amy's  suggestion  that  a  striking  design 
should  be  painted  in  the  middle  of  the  room, 
and  at  each  of  the  four  corners,  was  enthusias- 
tically accepted,  and  Priscilla  at  once  under- 
took the  execution  of  a  Chinese  dragon  in  the 
corner  of  the  room  which  was  most  in  evidence 
to  one  standing  in  the  doorway.  Amy  taking 
possession  of  the  can  of  yellow  paint,  set  her- 
self to  reproduce  a  sunrise  in  the  center  of  the 
room,  the  yellow  rays  radiating  from  the 
central  golden  orb  in  the  most  realistic  manner. 
Ruth,  her  imagination  stimulated  by  the  dis- 
covery of  a  can  of  black  paint,  promptly  set 
about  balancing  Friscilla's  dragon,  by  a  black 
cat  in  the  opposite  corner,  its  back  arched  like 
a  bow,  and  its  tail  standing  upright  like  an 
ebony  plume. 


A  TRIUMPH  OF  ART  57 

They  splashed  about,  admiring  one  another's 
work  enthusiastically  and  complacently  ac- 
cepting compliments  for  their  own.  And  when 
the  various  masterpieces  had  been  executed  to 
the  satisfaction  of  the  artists,  they  fell  to  work 
filling  in  the  remaining  spaces  with  gaily 
colored  rhomboids,  red,  yellow,  green,  black, 
and  purple.  Nothing  more  gorgeous  than 
Aunt  Phoebe's  painted  floor  could  possibly  be 
imagined.  Even  the  highly  colored  chrcunos 
on  the  wall  paled  before  it.  In  some  re- 
spects it  suggested  an  old-fashioned  crazy-quilt, 
though  when  the  dragon  and  the  black  cat  were 
taken  into  account,  it  was  more  like  a  bad  case 
of  nightmare.  After  the  girls  had  finished, 
they  withdrew  to  the  next  room  and,  gazing 
upon  it,  tried  to  imagine  the  sensations  of 
Uncle  Philander-Behind-His-Back  when  its 
kaleidoscopic  magnificence  should  break  upon 
his  astonished  gaze. 

Suddenly  they  were  panic-stricken  for  fear 
the  occupants  of  the  farm  house  should  return 
before  they  had  taken  their  departure.  They 
dressed  in  such  haste  that  they  failed  to  get  the 
full  benefit  of  the  bottle  of  turpentine  Amy  had 


58  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

brought  along  for  cleansing  purposes,  and  they 
went  back  to  town  with  green  and  purple 
smudges  on  their  fingers.  As  soon  as  they 
had  reached  home,  they  descended  on  Peggy  to 
tell  her  of  the  manner  in  which  they  had  ful- 
filled Amy's  promise,  and  Peggy  listened  with 
amazement  tinged  with  admiration. 

"I'm  rather  glad  you  didn't  tell  me,  for  I'm 
afraid  I  should  have  thrown  cold  water,  and  I 
can't  help  thinking  it's  exactly  what  Uncle 
Philander-Behind-His-Back  deserves.  And  if 
it  really  drives  him  into  buying  a  new  carpet, 
I  shall  feel  satisfied  that  you've  done  the  right 
thing." 

The  four  girls  had  agreed  to  play  tennis 
Saturday  of  that  week,  but  early  Saturday 
morning  Amy  called  Peggy  up  to  ask  to  be  ex- 
cused. "Aunt  Phoebe  is  coming  in  town  for 
some  shopping,"  she  explained,  and  inter- 
rupted herself  by  an  ecstatic  giggle.  "And 
she  wants  me  to  go  with  her.  She  wants  me  to 
help  her  select  a  carpet  for  the  sitting  room. ' ' 


AN  AFTERNOON   CALL, 

PRISCILLA  sat  at  her  little  dressing  table, 
studying  her  reflection  in  the  mirror  with  an 
absorbed  intentness  which  would  have  im- 
pressed nine  observers  out  of  ten  as  a  nai've  ex- 
hibition of  vanity.  This  verdict,  however, 
would  have  been  most  unfair.  Though  many 
people  considered  Priscilla  a  really  handsome 
girl,  she  had  always  been  inclined  to  be  un- 
duly modest  regarding  her  personal  appear- 
ance. Her  present  scrutiny  was  solely  for  the 
purpose  of  discovering  the  blemish  which  she 
was  sure  must  be  apparent  to  all  beholders. 

For  a  girl  of  her  age,  Priscilla  had  thought 
very  little  about  the  opposite  sex.  Her  devo- 
tion to  Peggy  had  been  a  sufficient  outlet  for 
her  sentiment,  while  her  contempt  for  those 
girls  who  could  think  and  talk  of  nothing  but 
the  "boys"  had,  perhaps,  led  her  to  go  need- 
lessly far  in  the  opposite  direction.  The 

59 


60  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

youths  who  had  fluttered  mothlike  about  the 
tall,  graceful  girl  had  met  such  a  baffling  in- 
difference that  they  had  transferred  their  at- 
tentions to  some  more  responsive  luminary, 
while  Priscilla  went  on  her  way  unruffled. 

But  this  year  things  were  different.  The 
four  Friendly  Terrace  chums  were  no  longer 
sufficient  to  themselves.  Peggy  was  engaged. 
Since  Nelson  Hallowell's  return  from  the 
service,  he  had  been  a  very  frequent  caller  at 
Ruth's  home.  And  on  one  or  two  occasions 
when  Priscilla  had  run  over  to  Amy's  in  the 
evening,  she  had  found  one  of  the  porch  chairs 
occupied  by  Robert  Carey.  Priscilla  began  to 
have  a  feeling  of  being  left  out,  new  in  her  ex- 
perience and  most  unpleasant.  She  wondered 
what  there  was  about  her  to  differentiate  her 
from  other  girls.  She  studied  her  reflection, 
dreading  yet  half  expecting  to  see  some  flaw 
which  would  inevitably  repel  the  beholder. 

On  this  particular  afternoon  as  Priscilla 
faced  herself  in  the  glass  and  tried  to  discover 
the  defects  that  kept  admirers  at  a  distance, 
affairs  had  reached  a  crisis.  The  University 
Field  Day  had  long  been  a  thrilling  occasion  to 


AN  AFTERNOON  CALL  61 

many  of  the  young  people  of  the  city,  not 
merely  because  of  their  interest  in  the  various 
events,  but  because  it  was  customary  for  each 
of  the  young  fellows  who  attended  to  ask  some 
girl  to  accompany  him.  Priscilla  had  taken  it 
for  granted  that  Peggy  would  go  with  Graham, 
and  was  not  surprised  to  learn  that  Nelson  had 
been  promised  the  pleasure  of  Ruth's  company 
on  the  important  occasion.  But  when  she  had 
suggested  to  Amy  that  they  should  go  together, 
and  Amy  after  a  moment's  hesitation  had  re- 
plied, "Why,  the  fact  is,  Priscilla,  Bob  Carey 
has  asked  me  to  go  with  him,"  Priscilla  was 
conscious  of  a  distinct  shock.  Her  subsequent 
dejection  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  prospect 
of  missing  Field  Day.  But  when  she  asked 
herself  if  she  were  really  the  least  attractive 
girl  in  the  world,  she  could  see  no  escape  from 
an  affirmative  answer. 

It  was  while  she  sat  there,  heavy-hearted  and 
vaguely  resentful,  that  the  maid  brought  up 
a  card,  one  of  those  small,  inobtrusive  slips  of 
cardboard  which  proclaim  the  modesty  of  the 
socially  inclined  male.  Priscilla  took  it,  im- 
pressed in  spite  of  herself.  Though  she  was 


62  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

old  enough  to  have  become  accustomed  to  such 
little  conventions,  the  life  of  a  college  girl  is 
so  necessarily  informal  that  few  people  who 
came  to  see  Priscilla  announced  their  presence 
in  this  fashion.  And  this  was  the  first  time  a 
young  man  had  sent  up  his  card  to  Priscilla. 

"Mr.  Horace  Endicott  Hitchcock,"  read 
Priscilla,  and  if  the  truth  be  told,  she  was  con- 
scious of  an  undefined  disappointment.  She 
had  known  Horace  Hitchcock  for  a  dozen  years, 
ever  since  a  smug  little  boy  in  a  velvet  suit,  he 
had  attended  the  children's  parties  which  were 
her  earliest  social  dissipations.  As  he  was 
about  three  years  older  than  Priscilla  she  had 
admired  him  extremely  in  those  days  when  the 
velvet  suit  was  much  in  evidence.  But  her 
attitude  had  altered  long  before  she  had  con- 
sidered herself  too  old  to  play  dolls. 

Horace's  boyhood  had  been  a  trying  period. 
He  had  never  had  a  boy  friend,  the  lads  of  his 
own  age  agreeing  with  contemptuous  una- 
nimity that  he  was  a  '  *  sissy. ' '  Perhaps  for  the 
same  reason,  the  girls  had  found  him  as  little 
appealing.  But  as  he  neared  his  majority, 
Horace  had  blossomed  into  a  belated  popu- 


AN  AFTERNOON  CALL  63 

larity.  He  was  somewhat  effeminate  as  far  as 
his  appearance  went.  He  talked  very  rapidly, 
and  used  more  gestures  than  is  customary  with 
young  Americans.  Horace  dressed  in  excellent 
taste,  and  was  somewhat  of  an  authority  on 
shirts  and  ties  and  matters  equally  important. 
Although  he  was  supposed  to  be  an  insurance 
solicitor,  he  was  never  too  occupied  to  attend 
any  social  affair  at  any  hour  of  the  day,  and 
this  gave  him  an  advantage  over  the  young  men 
who  were  on  duty  till  five  o'clock  or  later. 
Priscilla  had  seen  very  little  of  him  since  she 
had  entered  college,  and  now  as  she  looked  at 
his  card  she  only  wondered  if  he  had  come  to 
ask  her  to  play  for  some  entertainment. 

Priscilla  gave  a  last  dissatisfied  glance  at  her 
reflection  in  the  glass,  captured  a  stray  lock 
with  a  hairpin,  and  went  downstairs.  Sensible 
girl  as  she  was,  she  found  herself  impressed 
by  Horace's  greeting.  He  bowed  very  low 
over  her  hand,  like  the  hero  of  a  picture  play, 
and  drew  up  a  chair  for  her  with  great  elegance 
of  manner.  To  a  girl  suffering  from  lack  of 
proper  self-esteem,  his  air  of  deference  was 
peculiarly  soothing.  Yet  even  then,  it  never 


64  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

occurred  to  Priscilla  that  this  was  a  social  call. 
She  listened  to  Horace's  voluble  talk,  made 
such  replies  as  seemed  necessary,  noted  ap- 
provingly the  perfect  fit  of  his  light  suit,  and 
the  fact  that  his  tie  matched  his  silk  socks,  and 
waited  patiently  for  him  to  come  to  the  point. 

Something  like  twenty  minutes  had  passed 
when  Priscilla  reached  a  realizing  sense  of  the 
situation.  All  at  once,  while  Horace  was  de- 
scribing minutely  the  country  house  where  he 
had  spent  the  previous  week-end,  Priscilla  gave 
a  little  start  and  colored  high.  It  had  just 
dawned  upon  her  that  Horace  had  not  come  up- 
on any  utilitarian  errand,  that  he  was  there  for 
the  sole  purpose  of  seeing  her.  It  took  her  a 
little  time  to  adjust  herself  to  the  novel  idea, 
and  if  Horace  had  asked  her  a  point-blank 
question  during  the  interval,  she  would  not 
have  known  whether  to  answer  yes  or  no,  for 
she  had  not  the  least  idea  what  he  was  talking 
about. 

Then  Priscilla  waked  up.  She  exerted  her- 
self to  be  charming.  She  talked  almost  as 
fluently  as  Horace  himself.  She  laughed  de- 
lightedly at  his  little  jests ;  though,  if  the  truth 


AN  AFTERNOON  CALL  65 

be  told,  Horace's  humor  was  decidedly  anemic. 
She  listened  raptly  to  his  stories  of  his  achieve- 
ments, and  was  ready  with  the  expected 
admiring  smile  when  the  time  arrived.  A 
curious  sense  of  unreality  possessed  her.  She 
felt  as  if  she  were  taking  part  in  an  exciting 
game. 

"Miss  Priscilla,"  said  Horace  suddenly, 
"are  you  at  all  interested  in  Field  Day?" 

"It's  not  so  bad  when  one  knows  the  men," 
Priscilla  replied,  and  the  answer  showed  the 
effect  of  Horace 's  influence  in  a  little  over  half 
an  hour.  For  Priscilla  adored  Field  Day. 
When  she  watched  the  various  events  her  heart 
pounded  as  if  she  herself  were  taking  part  in 
the  hundred  yard  dash.  At  the  close  of  an 
exciting  race,  she  had  often  found  herself  on 
her  feet,  shrieking  spasmodically,  and  waving 
her  handkerchief,  and  feeling  the  smart  of 
tears  in  her  strained  eyes.  But  instinctively 
Priscilla  knew  that  Horace  would  not  consider 
Field  Day  a  legitimate  cause  for  excitement, 
and  so  she  answered  as  she  did. 

"Sometimes  I  find  it  a  deuce  of  a  bore," 
Horace  said.  "The  crowd  and  the  noise,  don't 


66  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

you  know.  But  if  you  are  willing  to  ac- 
company me  next  Friday,  Miss  Priscilla,  I'm 
sure  this  Field  Day  will  prove  a  delightful  ex- 
ception. ' ' 

"Oh,  thank  you,"  Priscilla  said  carelessly. 
"I  should  enjoy  going  very  much."  Her  non- 
chalant acceptance  of  the  invitation  gave  no 
idea  of  her  tumultuous  excitement.  She  was 
no  longer  the  odd  one  of  the  quartette  of 
chums.  She  was  no  longer  left  out.  Her 
misgivings  regarding  herself  were  instanta- 
neously set  at  rest,  for  she  knew  that,  had  she 
been  as  unattractive  as  she  had  feared,  Horace 
Hitchcock  would  never  have  invited  her  to 
accompany  him  on  such  an  occasion.  Her 
pulses  throbbed,  and  there  was  a  humming  in 
her  ears  as  she  chattered  on  without  any  clear 
idea  of  what  she  was  saying. 

Priscilla 's  feeling  of  elation  had  nothing  to 
do  with  Horace's  personality.  Had  he  been 
any  other  young  man,  equally  well  dressed  and 
well  mannered,  she  would  have  felt  exactly  the 
same.  Yet  under  the  circumstances  she  ex- 
perienced a  not  unreasonable  sense  of  grati- 
tude. She  shut  her  eyes  to  the  little  affecta- 


AN  AFTERNOON  CALL  67 

tions  of  manner  which  ordinarily  she  would 
have  found  amusing.  She  refused  to  acknowl- 
edge to  herself  that  Horace  was  bragging. 
She  had  never  liked  him,  and  the  Horace  who 
had  invited  her  to  the  Field  Day  exercises  was 
in  all  essentials  the  Horace  of  the  velvet  suit; 
yet  now,  if  she  had  heard  him  criticized,  she 
would  have  rushed  impetuously  to  his  defense. 
In  short,  Priscilla  was  started  on  a  course 
which  many  an  older  and  wiser  woman  has 
followed  to  disaster. 

Priscilla  was  in  no  hurry  to  mention  the 
fact  that  she  expected  to  be  a  spectator  of  the 
Field  Day  events.  The  very  intensity  of  her 
previous  qualms  made  her  the  more  inclined  to 
treat  the  present  situation  nonchalantly.  On 
Thursday  evening,  however,  she  remarked 
casually  to  Peggy  that  she  hoped  their  seats 
would  not  be  too  far  separated.  Peggy  looked 
up  in  pleased  surprise. 

"Are  you  going,  Priscilla?  I'm  awful  glad. 
Who 's  taking  you  f ' ' 

"Horace  Hitchcock." 

"Horace  Hitchcock!"  Peggy  repeated  the 
name  in  such  accents  of  astonishment  that 


68  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Priscilla    flushed.     ''Why    not!"    she    asked 
rather  coldly. 

"I  didn't  know  you  saw  anything  of  him." 
"I've  known  him  as  long  as  I've  known  you 
— almost  as  long  as  I've  known  anybody." 

"Why,  of  course,  Priscilla.  I  remember 
when  we  used  to  see  him  at  parties  in  a 
Fauntleroy  suit.  But  I've  lost  track  of  him 
for  an  age  and  I  thought  you  had,  too,  that's 
all."  There  was  an  underlying  astonishment 
in  Peggy's  apology.  She  could  not  understand 
Priscilla 's  seeming  readiness  to  take  offense. 
And  when  Priscilla  began  to  talk  of  something 
quite  different,  Peggy  realized  with  fresh 
amazement  that  the  peculiarities  >of  Horace 
Hitchcock  were,  for  the  present,  a  tabooed 
topic  between  them. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  RUMMAGE  SALE 

SUMMER  vacation!  Although,  the  Field  Day 
exercises,  and  the  few  Commencement  festivi- 
ties to  which  undergraduates  are  invited,  were 
only  four  days  past,  classes  and  lessons  seemed 
to  the  Quartet  never  to  have  existed;  or  if  so, 
only  in  a  dream.  And  it  would  be  the  same 
way  when  college  began  again  in  the  fall. 
Summer,  of  a  few  days  before,  would  be  a  dim 
memory  of  the  past. 

Though  they  had  not  heard  from  their  ex- 
aminations, they  all  felt  reasonably  confident  of 
having  passed  successfully.  At  any  rate,  they 
had  put  the  thought  of  them  resolutely  out  of 
mind,  following  Peggy's,  "one  thing  at  a  time, 
and  when  it's  done,  it  doesn't  do  any  good 
worrying  about  it. ' '  Those  four  days  had  been 
devoted  to  concentrated  doing  nothing. 

* '  *  DULCE  FAR  NIENTE  '  is  such  a  pretty  phrase 
it  makes  a  virtue  of  loafing,"  said  Priscilla. 

69 


70  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

And  to  this,  for  the  time  being,  the  other 
three  agreed. 

It  was  indirectly  through  Horace  Hitchcock 
that  the  Friendly  Terrace  girls  became 
interested  in  the  Rummage  Sale.  For  at  the 
Field  Day  exercises  Horace  and  Priscilla  had 
Happened  to  occupy  seats  in  the  Grand  Stand 
next  to  Mrs.  Sidney  Vanderpool,  and  Horace, 
who  seemed  a  prime  favorite  with  that 
influential  lady,  had  introduced  Priscilla. 
Mrs.  Vanderpool  was  in  charge  of  a  rummage 
sale  to  be  held  for  the  benefit  of  a  local  charity, 
and  recognizing  Priscilla 's  efficiency  at  a 
glance,  she  had  promptly  enlisted  her  under 
her  banner.  Since  whatever  concerned  one  of 
the  Friendly  Terrace  quartette  concerned 
all,  Mrs.  Vanderpool  in  securing  Priscilla 's 
cooperation  had  gained  four  new  assis- 
tants. 

It  was  Peggy,  strange  to  say,  whose 
enthusiasm  it  was  hardest  to  kindle.  "  Some- 
how I  never  thought  much  of  rummage  sales," 
she  owned.  "Perhaps  it  is  because  rummage 
always  reminds  me  of  rubbish." 

1  'But  that's  not  fair,  Peggy,"  Priscilla  re- 


THE  RUMMAGE  SALE  71 

monstrated.  "  Every  family  has  a  lot  of 
things  packed  away  that  would  be  a  blessing  to 
people  a  little  poorer." 

Peggy  reflected.  "I  can't  think  of  anything 
we  could  spare  that  would  be  much  of  a  bless- 
ing to  any  one." 

"You  haven't  looked  your  things  over  with 
that  thought  in  mind.  Take  Mrs.  Vander- 
pool,  for  instance.  Why,  she'd  discard  a  piece 
of  furniture  we  would  be  proud  to  put  in  the 
parlor.  A  chair  or 'sofa  we'd  think  too  shabby 
to  have  around  would  seem  magnificent  to  your 
friends,  the  Bonds." 

"I  suppose  there's  something  in  that," 
owned  Peggy. 

"Of  course  there  is.  Thanks  to  the  rum- 
mage sales,  people  get  rid  of  a  lot  of  stuff 
that's  no  further  good  to  them;  and  other 
people  get  a  great  many  things  that  they  can 
use,  and  pay  almost  nothing  for  them." 

"If  they  pay  so  little,  why  does  Mrs.  Van- 
derpool  expect  to  make  such  a  lot  of  money?" 
demanded  Peggy. 

"Look  at  the  five-and-ten  cent  stores.  Little 
profits  count  up,  if  you  make  sales  enough. 


72  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

And  in  a  rummage  sale  the  expenses  are  so 
small  that  almost  everything  is  profit." 

Peggy  began  to  think  that  her  prejudice  had 
been  unreasonable,  and  she  hunted  the  house 
over  to  find  something  worth  contributing. 
But  her  search  was  far  from  satisfactory  to 
herself.  Mrs.  Eaymond  was  not  one  of  the 
house-keepers  who  make  a  practice  of  hoarding 
useless  articles.  If  a  piece  of  furniture  broke 
down,  she  had  it  mended  if  it  were  worth  re- 
pairing; if  not,  she  either  gave  it  to  some 
poor  family  who  could  make  use  of  it,  or  else 
had  it  carted  away  by  the  rubbish  collector. 
When  Peggy's  exhaustive  search  ended,  she 
had  succeeded  in  collecting  for  the  sale  only  a 
few  pieces  of  crockery  and  a  carpet-sweeper 
which  had  outlived  its  halcyon  days,  though 
still  capable  of  picking  threads  off  the  carpet. 

The  sale  was  to  be  held  in  a  large  vacant 
store  in  the  down-town  district,  and  was  to 
last  three  days.  All  contributors  had  been 
asked  to  send  their  offerings  several  days  in 
advance,  and  the  Friendly  Terrace  girls,  with 
a  score  of  others,  were  on  hand  to  assist  in 
classifying  the  articles  as  they  arrived,  and 


THE  RUMMAGE  SALE  73 

were  arranging  them  so  as  to  make  the  best 
possible  showing.  As  Peggy  worked  with  the 
others,  she  was  conscious  of  a  return  of  her 
former  misgivings.  Undoubtedly  among  the 
contributions  arriving  by  the  wagon  load  there 
were  many  articles  which  would  be  useful  to 
some  one,  but  Peggy  wondered  who  would  be 
able  to  make  use  of  the  cracked  pitchers  and 
leaky  kitchen  utensils  which  were  coming  in 
such  quantities.  She  looked  disapprovingly  at 
the  loads  of  worn-out  finery,  displayed  on  the 
clothing  table.  In  her  opinion  people  who 
would  buy  second-hand  evening  dresses  ought 
not  to  afford  any.  Of  the  flimsy  evening 
frocks,  most  of  them  cut  excessively  low,  some 
were  spotted  and  soiled,  while  others  were  torn 
and  generally  bedraggled.  Peggy  made  up  her 
mind  that  under  no  circumstances  would  she  be 
a  saleswoman  at  that  table. 

The  array  of  bric-a-brac  aroused  similar 
qualms.  Looking  the  collection  over,  Peggy 
wondered  at  the  things  people  had  once  re- 
garded as  ornamental.  And  even  though  they 
now  realized  their  error,  and  were  glad  to  rid 
themselves  of  these  offenses  against  good  taste, 


74  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

it  seemed  to  Peggy  rather  hard  that  they 
should  encourage  the  unenlightened  to  pur- 
chase such  monstrosities  under  the  mistaken 
notion  that  they  were  beautifying  their  homes. 
She  was  glad  to  turn  to  the  book  table  where, 
if  nowhere  else,  really  worth-while  bargains 
were  offered.  There  were  piles  of  the  best 
magazines,  many  of  them  with  the  leaves  un- 
cut. There  were  odd  volumes  lof  classic 
writers,  the  most  of  which  seemed  in  excellent 
condition.  Peggy  set  herself  to  make  the  book 
table  as  inviting  as  possible,  in  hopes  that  the 
sales  would  be  gratifying. 

But  while  her  original  misgivings  had  re- 
turned in  full  force,  Peggy  said  nothing  about 
them.  As  far  as  she  could  see,  they  were  un- 
shared by  any  person  present.  The  three  girls 
who  were  her  most  intimate  friends  were  work- 
ing away  enthusiastically,  their  bright  faces  un- 
clouded by  a  doubt.  Peggy  had  been  a  little 
startled  by  the  discovery  that  Amy  had  delib- 
erately left  her  out  of  the  plot  for  painting 
Aunt  Phosbe's  sitting-room  floor.  It  led  her 
to  wonder  if  perhaps  she  was  over-particular. 

* '  No  one  else  seems  to  see  anything  out  of  the 


THE  RUMMAGE  SALE  75 

way, ' '  Peggy  reflected.  *  *  It  seems  as  if  it  must 
be  all  right,  if  I'm  the  only  one  who  thinks  it 
isn't.  Oh,  dear,  I  hope  I'm  not  getting  so  crit- 
ical and  fussy  that  I  imagine  that  things  are 
wrong  when  they  're  not. ' '  Again  her  thoughts 
turned  to  Aunt  Phoebe's  painted  floor.  If  Amy 
had  asked  her  cooperation,  she  would  have  re- 
fused, and  would  have  done  her  best  to  dis- 
suade Amy  from  her  reckless  scheme.  But  the 
results  had  been  all  that  could  be  desired. 
Aunt  Phoebe  had  her  new  carpet,  and  was  ra- 
diantly happy,  while  Uncle  Philander-BehincT- 
His-Back  had  undoubtedly  been  taught  a  lesson 
he  sorely  needed.  Strange  to  say,  he  did  not 
seem  to  hold  any  grudge  against  Amy  for  tak- 
ing sides  against  him.  Amy,  who  had  been  out 
to  admire  the  new  carpet,  reported  that  he  had 
received  her  without  any  display  of  animosity, 
and  unprotestingly  had  allowed  Aunt  Phoebe  to 
serve  her  with  ice  cream.  "It  must  be  that 
I'm  getting  too  particular,"  thought  Peggy. 
"This  time  I  won't  say  a  word." 

She  broke  her  resolution,  however,  when  the 
committee,  who  had  been  delegated  to  mark  the 
prices  of  each  article,  set  to  work.  Peggy  had 


76  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

comforted  herself  by  recalling  Priscilla's 
assurance  that  everything  would  be  sold  at 
prices  almost  too  small  to  mention.  Instead, 
it  seemed  to  the  astonished  Peggy  that  a  good 
price  was  set  on  articles  which  from  her  stand- 
point were  quite  valueless.  "0,  don't  you 
think  that  is  too  much?"  She  could  not  help  ex- 
claiming as  one  of  the  committee  attached  a 
price  card  to  a  three  legged  chair,  which  kept 
an  upright  position  only  by  balancing  itself 
against  a  rickety  table. 

The  lady  smiled  upon  her.  "We'll  have  the 
prices  rather  high  the  first  day,"  she  replied. 
' '  Of  course  we  want  to  make  all  we  can.  Then 
we'll  reduce  them  for  the  second  day,  and  on 
the  third  we  '11  take  anything  we  can  get. ' ' 

Peggy  did  not  return  the  smile.  She  was 
perplexed  and  troubled.  She  was  beginning  to 
realize  that  though  these  women  were  working 
for  charity,  they  knew  very  little  about  the 
practical  problems  of  the  poor.  She  looked  at 
the  three-legged  chair  and  wondered  what  she 
would  do  if  she  saw  some  reckless  mother  of  a 
family  preparing  to  squander  real  money  on 
anything  so  worthless. 


THE  RUMMAGE  SALE  77 

Although  Peggy  had  expressed  a  wish  to  be 
stationed  at  the  book  table,  Mrs.  Vanderpool 
had  insisted  on  placing  her  among  the  house- 
hold furnishings.  "You've  got  such  a  win- 
ning way,  my  dear,"  she  said,  "and  you  would 
be  wasted  on  the  books.  Nobody  buys  books 
at  a  rummage  sale  except  the  people  who  would 
buy  them  anyway.  I'm  expecting  great  things 
from  that  persuasive  tongue  of  yours." 
Peggy  blushed  guiltily,  even  while  she  smiled. 
She  was  glad  Mrs.  Vanderpool  had  such  a  com- 
plimentary idea  of  her  persuasive  powers  and 
hoped  she  would  not  disappoint  her. 

From  the  hour  of  its  opening,  the  rummage 
sale  was  crowded.  Peggy's  heart  went  out  to 
the  women  who  came  pouring  in  as  soon  as  the 
doors  were  opened  to  the  public.  Many  of 
them  had  a  distinctly  foreign  look.  They  came 
hatless,  holding  their  money  tightly,  and  look- 
ing about  them  with  sharp,  dark  eyes  in  search 
of  the  bargains  they  coveted.  In  the  evening 
the  shop  girls  and  factory  workers  were  out  in 
full  force,  and  Peggy  noticed  uneasily  how 
inevitably  they  gravitated  toward  the  cast-off 
finery  which  had  aroused  her  disapproval. 


78  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

She  turned  her  back  that  she  might  not  be  a 
witness  to  the  thriving  business  she  suspected 
that  department  of  doing. 

But  resolving  to  allow  events  to  take  their 
course  without  a  protest,  Peggy  had  failed  to 
reckon  with  her  'inborn  inability  to  shirk  re- 
sponsibility. The  formula  which  acts  as  a 
sedative  to  so  many  consciences,  "It's  none  of 
my  business, "  had  never  proved  effective  in 
her  case.  And  though  she  stuck  to  her  resolu- 
tion on  the  first  day,  the  developments  of  the 
second  proved  too  much  for  her.  It  was  late 
on  that  afternoon  when  she  noticed  a  flutter  at 
one  of  the  adjacent  counters,  and  discovered 
to  her  astonishment,  that  the  occasion  of  the 
excitement  was  an  acquaintance  of  her  own, 
no  other  than  the  husband  of  Elvira  Bond. 

Peggy  had  always  felt  a  certain  responsibility 
for  Elvira,  due  to  the  fact  that  she  had  known 
the  good-natured,  slatternly  girl  ever  since  she 
could  remember.  Mrs.  Bond  had  done  the 
Raymonds '  washing,  off  and  on  for  many  years, 
less  because  of  her  excellence  as  a  laundress, 
than  because  she  needed  the  work.  Then 
Elvira  had  grown  up,  and  taken  her  mother's 


THE  RUMMAGE  SALE  79 

place  at  the  wash-tubs.  The  year  of  America's 
entry  into  the  war  she  had  unexpectedly 
married  a  young  man  considerably  above  her 
in  the  social  scale,  who  had  immediately  been 
called  to  the  colors. 

Elvira's  romance  had  been  her  awakening. 
To  Peggy's  attentive  ear  she  had  confided  her 
dawning  aspirations.  "Joe  likes  things  neat 
and  clean, ' '  she  explained,  a  little  wistf ulness  in 
her  voice.  "Not  cluttered  up  the  way  Ma 
keeps  'em.  And  I'd  hate  to  make  him  ashamed 
of  me." 

"Of  course  you  would,"  Peggy  had  cried. 
"And  there's  not  a  bit  of  need,  Elvira.  Why, 
of  course  you  can  keep  your  house  as  nice  as 
anybody's.  All  you've  got  to  do  is  to  make  up 
your  mind  that  you  will." 

In  the  absence  of  the  young  husband  Peggy 
had  a  watchful  eye  on  Elvira.  She  had  done 
her  best  to  keep  alive  the  girl 's  newly  awakened 
ambitions,  in  spite  of  the  discouraging  home 
atmosphere.  And  after  Joe's  return  she  had 
frequently  gone  to  see  Elvira  in  the  little  home 
the  young  couple  had  purchased,  and  were  pay- 
ing for  on  the  installment  plan.  In  view  of  the 


80  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

girl's  bringing  up,  it  is  hardly  surprising  that 
she  had  her  relapses ;  but  on  the  whole,  Peggy 
was  proud  of  her.  Elvira  worked  hard,  was 
developing  a  commendable  thrift,  and  was  ex- 
tremely proud  of  her  little  home  and  of  her 
baby. 

It  was  at  one  of  the  bric-a-brac  tables  that 
Peggy  discovered  Elvira's  husband,  and  he 
seemed,  as  far  as  she  could  judge  from  his 
manner  and  the  manner  of  the  women  who 
were  calling  his  attention  to  one  thing  after 
another,  on  the  point  of  investing  largely  in  the 
heterogeneous  collection.  But  he  happened  to 
look  over  his  shoulder  in  Peggy's  direction, 
recognized  her  instantly,  and  came  toward  her, 
his  face  irradiated  by  a  broad  smile. 

"Afternoon,  Miss  Peggy,"  he  exclaimed. 
"I'm  looking  around.  I'm  thinking  of  buying 
a  few  little  things  to  take  home  to  the  wife." 
He  slapped  his  pocket.  "It's  pay-day,  Miss 
Peggy,  and  the  best  ain't  none  too  good  for 
Elvira  and  the  kid,  I'll  swear  it  ain't." 

Peggy  looked  at  him  silently.  It  was  the 
era  of  prohibition,  yet  an  unmistakable  odor 
radiated  from  Joe's  person  and  confirmed  the 


THE  RUMMAGE  SALE  81 

suspicion  aroused  by  his  unnatural  manner. 
Peggy's  heart  sank. 

All  unconscious  of  her  dismay,  Joe  was  ex- 
amining her  stock.  "What's  that,  Miss 
Peggy?"  He  indicated  by  a  gesture  the 
object  which  had  aroused  his  interest. 

"That  is  a  churn,  Joe." 

"Fine!  Fine!  I've  been  wanting  a  churn 
ever  since  I  got  married.  What 's  the  damage  T ' ' 

"But  you  can't  want  a  churn,  Joe;  you  don't 
keep  a  cow. ' ' 

"No  telling,  Miss  Peggy,  I  might  buy  a  cow 
'most  any  day."  But  his  vacillating  attention 
went  to  a  battered  table  and  he  gave  it  a  seem- 
ingly close  examination.  "I'll  take  it,  Miss 
Peggy,"  he  declared  with  a  wave  of  his  hand, 
"Just  the  thing  for  our  front  room." 

"Why,  Joe,  Elvira  has  a  table  for  the  front 
room  already." 

"Can't  have  too  much  of  a  good  thing,  you 
know,"  grinned  Joe.  "Say  I  like  the  looks  of 
that."  Peggy's  eyes  followed  his  extended 
finger  and  she  frowned.  "Why,  Joe,  that's  a 
coffee  urn,  and  it  wouldn't  be  suitable  for  a 
small  family.  Besides,  it  leaks." 


82  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"I'm  bound  to  take  home  something,  Miss 
Peggy,"  snickered  Joe.  " Nothing  small  about 
me.  My  pockets  are  pretty  well  lined,  and 
you'll  find  me  a  good  customer." 

"Joe,"  said  Peggy  desperately,  " Listen  to 
me.  You  don't  want  any  of  this  stuff  in  your 
pretty  little  home.  It's  not  good  enough." 

"I  guess  I  know  what  I  want." 

"No,  Joe.  You  must  excuse  me,  but  to-day 
you  don't  know  what  you  want.  If  you  were 
quite  yourself  you'd  never  think  of  taking 
Elvira  home  a  rickety  table  or  a  churn." 

"You  mean  to  tell  me  that  I'm  drunk." 
Joe's  manner  had  lost  its  suavity.  His  eyes 
flashed  as  he  regarded  her. 

"No,  Joe,  you're  not  drunk,  but  you've  been 
drinking  and  you're  not  yourself.  And  I 
know  by  to-morrow  you  '11  feel  awfully  sorry  if 
you  have  carried  a  lot  of  rubbish  into  your  dear 
little  home." 

For  a  moment  Joe  wavered  between  amia- 
bility and  anger.  His  masculine  pride  was 
touched  by  the  implication  that  he  did  not  know 
his  own  mind,  and  alcohol  had  quickened  his 
propensity  to  take  offense.  But  on  the  other 


THE  RUMMAGE  SALE  83 

hand,  there  was  something  disarming  in  the 
way  Peggy  spoke  of  his  wife  and  his  home,  and 
her  smile  was  appealing.  Mrs.  Vanderpool 
had  counted  on  her  winning  way  and  it  was  as 
effective  as  she  had  hoped,  though  Peggy  did 
not  apply  it  exactly  as  she  had  expected  of  her. 

After  a  moment 's  hesitation,  Joe  capitulated. 
"I  guess  you're  right,  Miss  Peggy.  When  a 
fellow's  had  a  few  drinks,  most  anything  looks 
like  a  bargain.  Guess  this  is  a  lot  of  junk." 

"There's  nothing  here  that  you  and  Elvira 
want,  I'm  sure  of  that,  Joe." 

"Good-by,  Miss  Peggy." 

"Good-by,  Joe.  Tell  Elvira  I'll  be  over  to 
see  her  very  soon." 

Peggy  drew  a  breath  of  relief  when  she  saw 
Joe  leave  the  building.  But  her  congratu- 
latory mood  was  not  to  last.  For  not  long 
after  Joe's  departure,  she  became  aware  of 
Mrs.  Vanderpool  at  her  elbow. 

"Well,  you  had  a  profitable  customer  at 
last,"  smiled  the  lady.  "Wanted  to  buy  you 
out,  didn't  he  I" 

The  possibility  of  evasion  did  not  occur  to 
Peggy.  She  lifted  her  frank  eyes.  "He 


84  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

talked  about  buying  a  lot  of  useless  things," 
she  answered,  "but  of  course  I  wouldn't  let  him. 
You  see,  he'd  been  drinking  and  he  didn't 
really  know  what  he  wanted.  And  besides,  I 
know  his  wife." 

The  blank  expression  with  which  Mrs.  Van- 
derpool  regarded  her  made  plain  the  impos- 
sibility of  their  ever  coming  to  an  understand- 
ing. Peggy  started  to  go  on,  and  then  lapsed 
into  silence,  realizing  the  uselessness  of  further 
explanations.  Mrs.  Vanderpool  having  re- 
lieved her  mind  by  a  long  stare,  turned 
majestically  away,  and  Peggy  heard  her  a  little 
later,  talking  animatedly  of  some  one  who,  it 
appeared,  was  totally  lacking  in  the  business  in- 
stinct. Peggy  thought  she  could  come  very 
near  guessing  the  identity  of  the  person  re- 
ferred to.  But  as  she  went  on  pointing  out  to 
possible  purchasers  the  flaws  in  her  wares,  she 
made  up  her  mind  that  the  chance  of  being 
over-particular  in  matters  of  right  and  wrong 
was  very  trifling  compared  with  the  danger  of 
not  being  particular  enough. 


CHAPTER  VI 

PRISCILLA  HAS  A  SECRET 

PEGGY  was  worried  about  Priscilla.  For  the 
first  time  in  their  years  of  intimacy  she  could 
not  understand  her  friend ;  and  worst  of  all,  it 
seemed  out  of  the  question  to  discuss  the  situa- 
tion and  come  to  an  understanding. 

"Do  you  think  she  can  like  him?"  Peggy 
asked  the  other  Friendly  Terrace  girls  des- 
pairingly. "Because  he's  always  seemed  to 
me  almost  a  joke.  I  don't  know  how  I  could 
bear  to  have  Priscilla  fall  in  love  with  a  man  I 
wanted  to  laugh  at." 

Though  both  girls  would  have  been  glad  to 
reassure  her,  an  ominous  silence  followed  her 
outbreak.  "There's  no  accounting  for  tastes," 
said  Ruth  at  length,  a  suggestion  of  superiority 
in  her  tone. 

"Priscilla  ought  to  have  a  good  talking 
to,"  exclaimed  Amy.  "She's  got  plenty  of 
sense,  and  to  think  of  her  letting  Horace  Hitch- 

85 


86  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

cock   hang   around!    I'd   like   to   tell   her — 

"You  mustn't,  Amy,"  Peggy  interrupted. 
"It  would  never  do  to  let  her  know  how  you 
feel  about  it.  That's  one  of  the  things  that 
make  me  so  anxious — she's  so  awfully  touchy 
on  the  subject  of  Horace.  She  won't  have  him 
criticized. ' ' 

Peggy  had  valiantly  done  her  best  to  culti- 
vate a  liking  for  Horace  Hitchcock.  Since  the 
fatal  Field  Day  when  he  had  acted  as  Priscilla's 
escort,  his  attentions  had  been  unremitting. 
He  had  called  several  times  a  week.  He  had 
brought  Priscilla  flowers  and  boxes  of  candy,  to 
say  nothing  of  books  of  poems,  from  which  he 
had  read  aloud  to  her  by  the  hour.  Peggy, 
assuming  that  since  Priscilla  was  seeing  so 
much  of  Horace,  he  must  be  quite  a  different 
person  from  what  she  supposed,  had  invited 
him  to  her  home  along  with  the  others  of  her 
little  circle,  only  to  find  it  would  not  do. 
Horace  and  the  others  would  not  mix  any  more 
'than  oil  and  water. 

"For  Heaven's  sake,  don't  ask  that  Hitch- 
cock here  again,"  Graham  implored  Peggy, 
after  an  evening  that  had  been  a  failure, 


PRISCILLA  HAS  A  SECRET  87 

socially  considered.  "He  puts  on  airs  as  if 
he  were  the  Prince  of  Wales — no,  that's  not 
fair  to  the  prince.  But  Hitchcock  is  a  snob  and 
a  sissy  and  he  makes  me  tired. " 

"But  if  Priscilla  likes  him,  Graham — " 
"She  can't,"  Graham  had  argued,  not  un- 
reasonably. "She  must  see  through  him  just 
as  the  rest  of  us  do;  and  even  while  she's  so 
pleasant  to  him,  she  must  be  laughing  in  her 
sleeve. ' ' 

But  reasonable  as  Graham's  stand  had 
seemed,  Priscilla  was  in  no  mood  to  laugh  at 
Horace  Hitchcock.  Indeed,  she  was  deliber- 
ately shutting  her  eyes  to  his  weaknesses,  and 
holding  before  herself  such  an  idealized  like- 
ness of  the  real  Horace  that  no  one  but  herself 
would  have  recognized  it.  Horace's  attentions 
flattered  her  vanity.  Every  call  helped  to  re- 
assure her  anxiety  in  the  matter  of  her  own 
attractiveness.  Moreover,  Priscilla  was  a 
little  dazzled  by  Horace's  seeming  familiarity 
with  the  people  whose  names  were  chronicled 
in  the  society  columns  of  the  daily  paper.  She 
had  seen  for  herself  that  Mrs.  Sidney  Vander- 
pool  regarded  him  with  favor,  and  Horace  had 


PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 


been  at  some  pains  to  let  her  know  that  other 
ladies,  some  of  them  young  and  beautiful,  held 
him  in  equally  high  esteem.  That  he  should 
leave  girls,  who  could  not  go  to  New  York  for  a 
week  without  the  fact  brought  to  the  public  at- 
tention in  the  daily  papers,  in  order  that  he 
might  spend  his  evenings  with  her,  gave 
Priscilla  an  intoxicating  sense  of  power. 

But  foolish  as  this  all  was,  worse  was  to 
come,  and  all  because  Amy  disregarded  Peggy's 
prudent  counsel.  Peggy  had  discovered  an 
undue  sensitiveness  in  Priscilla,  where  Horace 
was  concerned,  and  had  been  sensible  enough 
to  perceive  that  any  criticism  of  her  ardent 
admirer,  instead  of  prejudicing  Priscilla 
against  him,  was  likely  to  have  the  opposite 
effect.  It  hardly  need  be  said  that  Amy  did  not 
flout  Peggy 's  advice,  but  in  the  course  of  a  con- 
versation with  Priscilla  she  lost  her  temper 
and  subsequently  her  head. 

It  began  with  a  most  amiable  intention  on 
Amy's  part.  "Is  Horace  coming  up  to-night  I '•' 
she  asked  Priscilla,  as  the  two  strolled  along 
the  Terrace  in  the  hazy  hush  of  a  summer  after- 
noon. 


PRISCILLA  HAS  A  SECRET  89 

"I — I  shouldn't  be  surprised  to  see  him," 
owned  Priscilla,  with  a  becoming  blush. 

"Bob  telephoned  me  this-  morning  that  he'd 
be  up.  If  Horace  comes,  bring  him  over  and 
I'll  try  to  get  Peggy  and  Euth — " 

" Shall  you  ask  Nelson  Hallowell?"  Priscilla 
inquired,  a  reservation  in  her  tone  which  Amy 
did  not  understand. 

"I'll  tell  Ruth  to  bring  him  if  he  comes,  and 
he's  pretty  sure  to  be  on  hand,"  laughed  Amy. 
"He's  making  up  for  the  chances  he  missed 
when  he  was  in  the  service." 

"Then  I'm  afraid  we  can't  come,"  said 
Priscilla.  "Horace  thinks  Bob  Carey  is  fine, 
and  he  rather  likes  Graham,  but  he  draws  the 
line  at  Nelson." 

Amy  stopped  short,  her  plump  face  crimson. 
"Please  tell  me  what  you  mean  by  his  drawing 
the  line?" 

"Well,  Amy,  Pve  no  doubt  that  Nelson -is  a 
very  fine  fellow,  as  far  as  morals  go,  but  his 
social  position,  you  know — " 

"What  about  it?"  As  the  two  girls  were 
standing  side  by  side,  it  was  quite  unneces- 
sary for  Amy  to  speak  so  loudly.  Her  defiant 


90  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

tone    seemed   to   challenge    the    entire   block. 

"Hush,  Amy.  I'm  not  deaf.  Of  course 
Nelson  comes  from  quite  an  ordinary  family, 
and  he's  only  a  clerk,  and  Horace  really  doesn't 
care  to  meet  him  socially. ' ' 

Amy  burst  into  an  angry  laugh.  "Horace 
Hitchcock  said  that.  What  a  joke!" 

"I  don't  quite  understand  you,  Amy." 
Priscilla  spoke  with  extreme  frigidity. 

"Why,  there's  enough  in  Nelson  Hallowell's 
little  finger  to  make  several  Horaces.  To  think 
of  that  dandified  little  manikin 's  turning  up  his 
nose  at  a  fellow  like  Nelson." 

"Amy  Lassell,  how  dare  you?" 

"Oh,  fudge,  Priscilla,  you  know  perfectly 
well  what  Horace  Hitchcock  is,  and  you  needn't 
pretend  to  admire  him,  for  I  know  better." 

"I  won't  listen  to  you  any  longer,"  cried 
Priscilla  furiously,  "slandering  my  friends." 
She  turned  abruptly  and  crossed  the  street. 
The  two  girls  continued  on  their  homeward 
way  with  the  width  of  the  Terrace  between 
them,  each  looking  steadily  ahead,  ignoring  the 
other's  presence. 

Before  Amy  reached  home  she  was  sorry. 


PRISCILLA  HAS  A  SECRET  91 

She  saw  she  had  been  wrong  as  well  as  right. 
Her  whole-hearted  championship  of  Nelson  had 
not  necessitated  sneering  at  Horace.  Amy 
realized  that  Priscilla  had  good  reason  to  be 
angry,  and  resolved  on  a  whole-hearted  apology 
next  day. 

It  was  a  pity  she  had  not  followed  up  her 
feeling  of  penitence  by  immediate  action,  for 
when  Horace  came  that  evening  he  found 
Priscilla  in  an  unwonted  mood.  She  had 
dramatized  the  whole  affair  to  herself.  Every- 
one was  unjust  to  Horace.  Even  Peggy 
allowed  her  childish  prejudices  to  influence  her 
unwarrantedly.  But  she  herself  was  Horace's 
friend  and  she  would  be  loyal  to  that  friend- 
ship, cost  what  it  might. 

A  few  minutes  after  his  arrival  Horace 
suggested  a  walk  in  the  neighboring  park, 
which  had  been  so  little  "improved"  that 
walking  through  it  was  almost  like  stroll- 
ing along  country  lanes.  Though  the  night 
was  warm,  most  of  the  populace  preferred  the 
movies,  and  Horace  and  Priscilla  had  the 
park  practically  to  themselves.  The  night 
wind  sighed  languorously  through  the  trees. 


92  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

The    air    was    full    of    ineffable    fragrances. 

"Oh,  Priscilla,"  exclaimed  Horace  suddenly, 
and  caught  her  hand.  It  seemed  to  Priscilla 
that  her  heart  stood  still.  There  was  a  note  in 
Horace's  voice  she  had  never  heard  before. 
She  was  sure  that  something  wonderful  was 
happening.  And  the  irritating  part  was  that 
she  could  not  do  justice  to  it,  for  she  kept 
thinking  of  something  else.  She  should,  she 
was  sure,  be  entirely  absorbed  in  what  Horace 
was  going  to  say ;  and  right  at  that  moment,  she 
wondered  if  Euth  and  Nelson  were  sitting  on 
Amy's  porch. 

"Oh,  Priscilla,"  Horace  was  murmuring, 
'  *  Do  you  not  feel  as  I  do,  that  we  have  met  and 
loved  before?  You  were  mine,  Priscilla,  when 
the  pyramids  were  building.  You  were  mine 
in  Babylon.  Tell  me  that  you  have  not 
forgotten.  Tell  me  that  you  love  me. ' ' 

It  was  only  about  half  an  hour  from  that 
impassioned  speech  before  they  were  walking 
home  decorously  along  the  lighted  streets,  but 
Priscilla  had  a  feeling  as  if  she  had  been  away 
for  months  and  months.  An  unbelievable  thing 
had  happened.  She  was  engaged.  It  was  un- 


PRISCILLA  HAS  A  SECRET  93 

derstood  that  the  engagement  was  not  to  be 
mentioned  at  present,  not  even  to  Priscilla's 
father  and  mother.  Horace  had  said  some- 
thing to  the  effect  that  to  let  outsiders  into 
their  secret  would  bruise  the  petals  of  the 
flower  of  love,  and  she  had  agreed  to  the  post- 
ponement of  that  catastrophe,  without  asking 
herself  why  the  flower  of  love  should  be  so 
fragile.  But  the  fact  remained  that  she  was 
the  second  of  the  quartette  to  become  engaged, 
and  she  took  a  rather  foolish  satisfaction  in 
the  realization.  She  made  up  her  mind  that 
her  former  qualms  as  to  her  own  unattractive- 
ness  were  without  foundation,  for  otherwise 
a  social  favorite  like  Horace  would  never  have 
asked  her  to  marry  him. 

Priscilla's  father  and  mother  were  on  the 
porch  when  the  young  people  reached  home, 
and,  as  it  was  much  too  warm  to  stay  indoors, 
the  evening  which  had  contained  so  thrilling 
an  episode  ended  rather  tamely.  Mr.  Combs 
and  Horace  exchanged  ideas  on  local  politics, 
and  Mrs.  Combs  and  Horace  expressed  them- 
selves on  the  subject  of  the  weather.  Priscilla 
had  nothing  to  say  on  either  interesting  topic. 


94  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

She  was  trying  to  realize  that  some  day,  in- 
stead of  saying  "Mr.  Combs"  and  "Mrs. 
Combs, "  Horace  would  be  addressing  her 
parents  as  "father"  and  "mother."  This 
seemed  so  extraordinary  that  she  was  almost 
inclined  to  believe  that  she  had  dreamed  the 
whole  thing,  though  the  significantly  tender 
pressure  of  Horace's  fingers,  as  he  said  good- 
night, assured  her  to  the  contrary. 

Priscilla  slept  very  poorly  that  night.  Her 
dreams  were  troubled.  And  each  time  she 
woke,  which  was  on  the  average  of  once  an 
hour,  she  had  a  dreadful  sense  of  impending 
disaster.  On  each  occasion  it  took  her  several 
minutes  to  convince  herself  that  nothing  was 
wrong,  that  instead  she  was  a  very  fortunate 
and  happy  girl,  singled  out  of  the  world  of 
girls  by  a  most  unusual  young  man.  And  thus 
reassured,  she  would  drop  off  to  sleep,  to  start 
again  with  troubled  dreams,  and  to  go  again 
through  the  whole  program. 

Owing  to  her  restless  night,  Priscilla  over- 
slept and  had  to  dress  in  a  hurry  to  avoid  being 
late  to  breakfast.  By  expedition  she  reached 
the  dining  room  just  after  her  mother  had 


PRISCILLA  HAS  A  SECRET  95 

seated  herself.  Her  father  followed  a  half 
minute  later,  and  leaning  over  her  mother's 
chair  kissed  her  cheek.  "Know  what  day  it 
is?" 

"Of  course,  silly,"  laughed  Mrs.  Combs. 
"But  I'm  astonished  to  hear  that  you  do." 

Smiling  broadly,  Mr.  Combs  went  around  the 
table  and  took  his  seat.  "We  should  have 
planned  a  celebration,"  he  remarked. 

"What,  and  advertise  our  advanced  age!" 
exclaimed  his  wife  in  mock  consternation. 

"That's  so,"  owned  Mr.  Combs  with  a 
chuckle.  "I  remember  when  a  silver  wedding 
seemed  to  me  significant  of  extreme  age.  What 
do  you  think,  daughter,  of  having  parents  old 
enough  to  have  been  married  twenty-five 
years?" 

Then  Priscilla  knew  what  was  the  matter  with 
her.  She  thought  of  sitting  opposite  Horace 
Hitchcock  twice  a  day,  year  in  and  year  out,  for 
a  quarter  of  a  century,  and  her  heart  turned 
sick  within  her.  All  at  once  she  knew  how 
his  affections  of  manner  would  grate  on  one 
who  watched  them  for  twenty-five  years."  He 
had  a  way  of  raising  his  eye-brows  and  pursing 


96  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

his  mouth  which,  she  was  convinced,  would 
drive  her  frantic  in  course  of  time.  And  then 
her  relentless  common-sense,  awake  at  last, 
went  on  to  assure  her  that  the  Horace  Hitch- 
cock who  had  made  love  to  her  in  the  park  the 
previous  evening  was  in  all  essentials  the  smug, 
vain  little  boy  nobody  liked.  She  watched  her 
father  and  mother  exchanging  smiles  and  knew 
that  such  good  comradeship  between  Horace 
and  herself  was  unthinkable.  She  doubted  if 
there  would  be  a  smile  left  in  her  after  twenty- 
five  years  of  his  society. 

"You  look  tired  this  morning,  Priscilla," 
said  Mr.  Combs.  "And  I  can't  say  I  wonder. 
That  admirer  of  yours  makes  me  rather — " 

"He's  a  very  pleasant  boy,  I'm  sure,"  in- 
terrupted Mrs.  Combs  hastily,  "though  I  wish 
his  manners  were  just  a  little  simpler.  But 
he  always  looks  so  neat  that  it's  refreshing  to 
the  eye.  And  by  the  way,  dear,  I  think  you 
had  better  see  your  tailor  and  get  samples  for 
your  fall  suit.  You've  got  to  the  point  where 
you  must  have  something." 

Priscilla  did  not  notice  her  mother's  dex- 
trous changing  of  the  subject.  She  was  too 


PRISCILLA  HAS  A  SECRET  97 

absorbed  in  looking  ahead  twenty-five  weary 
years.  Of  course,  in  view  of  her  discovery,  the 
only  sensible  thing  to  do  was  to  get  in  touch 
with  Horace,  and  tell  him  that  the  lady  with 
whom  he  had  been  on  such  friendly  terms  in 
Babylon  was  an  entirely  different  person.  But 
that  sane  and  simple  way  of  escape  never  oc- 
curred to  Priscilla.  She  had  given  her  word. 
She  must  stand  by  it,  no  matter  what  it  cost. 

Amy  came  over  about  eleven  o'clock,  looking 
very  penitent.  "Priscilla,"  she  said,  "I  don't 
blame  you  a  bit  for  getting  angry  yesterday. 
I  'm  ashamed  of  what  I  said.  Of  course, ' '  added 
Amy,  her  natural  candor  getting  the  better  of 
her,  "Horace  Hitchcock  doesn't  appeal  to  me, 
but  that  doesn't  excuse  me  for  calling  him  a 
manikin,  and  you  have  a  right  to  choose  your 
friends  to  please  yourself." 

Priscilla 's  acceptance  of  this  apology  took 
Amy  by  surprise.  She  dropped  her  head  on 
her  visitor's  shoulder — as  Priscilla  was  tall 
and  Amy  was  short,  this  was  a  feat  requiring 
considerable  dexterity — and  burst  into  tears. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE   FRIENDLY    TERRACE    ORPHANAGE 

PRISCILLA'S  engagement,  instead  of  interrupt- 
ing her  intimacy  with  her  chums  on  Friendly 
Terrace,  seemed  to  intensify  it.  Up  to  the 
night  that  she  had  walked  with  Horace  in  the 
park,  and  he  had  claimed  her  on  the  score  of 
an  affection  dating  back  to  Babylon,  Priscilla 
had  rather  enjoyed  informing  Peggy  and  others 
that  she  would  be  unable  to  join  in  their  plans 
for  the  evening,  as  she  was  expecting  a  caller. 
But  now  all  this  was  changed.  Instead,  when 
Horace  called  up  to  suggest  coming  out,  he  was 
very  likely  to  hear  that  his  sweetheart  of  Baby- 
lonian days  had  an  imperative  engagement 
with  Peggy,  or  Euth,  or  Amy,  or  more  prob- 
ably with  all  three. 

It  was  after  an  evening  spent  at  a  moving 
picture  house  that  Peggy  made  a  suggestion 
destined  to  have  more  momentous  results  than 
she  dreamed.  They  had  gone  early  to  avoid 

98 


FRIENDLY  TERRACE  ORPHANAGE        99 

the  crowd  which  a  popular  film  is  likely  to 
draw  even  in  the  warmest  weather,  and  at  nine 
o  'clock  they  were  occupying  chairs  on  Peggy 's 
porch,  and  discussing  the  heat.  "How  about 
ice  cream? "  inquired  Amy,  fanning  herself 
with  a  magazine  some  one  had  left  in  the  ham- 
mock. 

Before  any  one  could  answer,  Peggy  had  in- 
terposed with  her  astonishing  suggestion. 
"Girls,  I  move  we  adopt  a  French  orphan." 

Amy  forgot  her  interest  in  ice  cream.  "A 
French  orphan,"  she  gasped,  "What  for?" 

"Well,  there  are  plenty  of  reasons  from  the 
orphan's  standpoint,  and  several  from  ours,  it 
seems  to  me.  Do  you  know  we're  getting  ex- 
travagant." 

4 '  Oh,  Peggy, ' '  Ruth  reproached  her.  '  *  Why, 
as  far  as  clothes  go,  I  never  got  along  with  so 
few  in  my  life." 

"I  didn't  say  we  were  extravagant  in  clothes. 
But  do  you  know,  we're  getting  to  spend  lots 
of  money  for  little,  no-account  things.  How 
many  nights  this  week  have  we  been  to  a 
movie  ? ' ' 

The  question  was  a  rhetorical  one,  as  Peggy 


100  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

knew  the  answer  as  well  as  any  one.  But 
nevertheless  Amy  replied,  "We've  been  three 
times,  but  one  night  the  boys  took  us." 

"It  costs  just  as  much,  no  matter  who  pays. 
There  are  four  of  us;  and  at  twenty-five  cents 
apiece,  that  makes  a  dollar  an  evening.  Three 
dollars  a  week  for  movies,  just  for  us  four." 

"Goodness,"  exclaimed  Amy  in  as  astonished 
a  tone  as  if  this  very  simple  arithmetical  cal- 
culation had  been  beyond  her.  "That  does 
seem  a  lot." 

"And  that's  not  all,"  continued  Peggy. 
"We've  had  ice  cream,  or  ice  cream  soda,  or 
something  of  the  sort,  at  least  three  times 
this  week,  and  these  days  you  can't  go  near  a 
soda  fountain  for  less  than  fifteen  cents,  and 
you're  more  likely  to  pay  twenty  or  twenty-five. 
If  we  call  our  bill  two  dollars,  that's  putting  it 
pretty  low.  Five  dollars,  altogether." 

"That  is  too  much,  Peggy,"  Priscilla  agreed. 
"Unless  you  stop  to  count  up,  you  wouldn't 
believe  how  much  you  can  spend  and  all  the 
time  think  you've  been  economical.  But  why 
the  French  orphan?" 

1 1  Well,  it 's  awfully  hard  work  saving  by  main 


FRIENDLY  TERRACE  ORPHANAGE      101 

strength,  and  it's  easy  enough  if  you  (have 
something  to  save  for.  If  I  happen  to  feel 
hungry  for  ice  cream.' — " 

Amy  groaned.  "Don't!"  she  said  in  a  hol- 
low voice.  "If  we're  not  going  to  have  any, 
for  pity's  sake  don't  talk  about  it." 

Peggy  heartlessly  ignored  her  friend's  pro- 
test. "If  I'm  hungry  for  ice  cream,  it  doesn't 
do  me  much  good  to  tell  myself  that  I  had  a 
dish  night  before  last.  I'll  just  think,  'Oh, 
well,  what's  twenty-five  cents!'  But  if  I'm 
saving  up  for  something,  it 's  a  different  matter. 
We  found  that  out  when  we  were  paying  for 
our  Liberty  Bonds." 

"Won't  it  cost  a  great  deal  to  adopt  an 
orphan?"  asked  Ruth  doubtfully. 

"Why,  we  won't  have  to  pay  all  its  expenses. 
But  there  are  lots  of  French  children  left  with- 
out fathers  and  mothers,  who  have  some  rela- 
tive who  can  give  them  a  home  if  they  have 
a  little  extra  to  help  them  out.  I  think  forty 
dollars  will  do  it." 

"Forty  dollars  a  year?"  Amy  exclaimed  in 
amazement. 

"I'm  pretty  sure  that's  it.     Mrs.  Alexander 


102  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

was  talking  to  me  about  it  just  the  other  day, 
and  I'm  certain  she  said  forty  dollars." 

"Then  let's  adopt  an  orphan  right  away/' 
cried  Amy.  "And  we'll  have  money  enough 
left  for  sodas." 

"Why,  of  course  I  didn't  mean  we  should 
give  up  all  our  good  times,"  Peggy  exclaimed. 
"Only  it  seemed  to  me  we  were  getting  a  little 
too  extravagant.  Then  if  you  all  agree,  I  think 
I'll  go  and  telephone  Mrs.  Alexander  that  we'll 
take  an  orphan.  She's  worried  because  people 
aren't  as  interested  as  they  ought  to  be." 

It  was  while  Peggy  was  at  the  telephone  that 
a  small  girl  appeared,  carrying  a  large  bundle. 
"I've  brought  home  Mrs.  Raymond's  dress," 
she  said  shyly,  looking  from  one  to  another  of 
the  occupants  of  the  porch. 

"Mrs.  Raymond  isn't  home,  but  Miss  Peggy 
is.  She's  telephoning  now,  but  she'll  be  out 
in  a  minute,"  said  Priscilla. 

"You'd  better  sit  down  and  rest  while  you 
wait  for  her,"  suggested  Ruth  kindly,  pushing 
forward  a  porch  rocking-chair.  The  small  girl 
accepted  the  invitation  and  looked  smaller  than 
ever  in  the  capacious  depths  of  the  big  chair. 


FRIENDLY  TERRACE  ORPHANAGE      103 

Peggy  came  out  beaming.  "Mrs.  Alexander 
is  perfectly  delighted,  girls.  She  says —  ^Why, 
hello,  Myrtle!" 

"Hello,  Miss  Peggy,"  returned  the  girl  with 
the  bundle.  "I  brought  home  your  mother's 
dress.  Aunt  Georgie  couldn't  get  it  finished 
any  earlier." 

"Mother  gave  you  up  for  to-night,  Myrtle. 
She  left  at  eight  o'clock,  but  I  think  I  know 
where  she  put  the  money." 

Peggy's  conjecture  proved  correct.  She 
brought  out  the  amount  of  the  dressmaker's 
bill,  and  having  counted  it  before  Myrtle 's  eyes, 
she  folded  the  bills  carefully  and  stuffed  them 
into  Myrtle's  diminutive  pocket  book.  "Shall 
you  be  glad  when  school  opens,  Myrtle?"  she 
asked  pleasantly. 

"I'm  not  going  to  school  any  more,  Miss 
Peggy." 

"What!    You're  going  to  leave  school?" 

"Aunt  Georgie  can't  afford  to  keep  me  any 
longer.  Everything  is  so  high,"  sighed  the 
child,  with  a  worldly-wise  air  that  would  have 
seemed  funny  had  it  not  been  so  apparent  that 
she  knew  what  she  was  talking  about. 


104  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"But  you  can't  be  nearly  fourteen,  Myrtle," 
protested  Peggy.  "And  you  were  doing  so 
well  in  school.'* 

"I'm  twelve  in  September,  but  Aunt  Georgie 
can  get  permit  for  me  to  work,  if  she  can't 
afford  to  keep  me  in  school." 

"Would  you  rather  work  than  go  to  school?" 
asked  Amy,  rather  tactlessly. 

The  eyes  of  the  little  girl  filled.  She  sniffed 
bravely  as  she  fumbled  for  her  handkerchief. 

"I  like  school  better,"  she  explained,  a  catch 
in  her  voice.  '  *  But  I  don 't  like  to  be  a  burden. ' ' 

There  was  a  brief  silence  on  the  porch  as 
the  little  figure  went  down  the  walk,  and  then 
Priscilla  murmured  pityingly,  "Poor  child!" 

"It's  a  shame,"  exclaimed  Peggy  warmly. 
"She's  a  bright  little  thing.  She's  not  twelve 
till  September,  and  she's  ready  for  the  high 
school  already.  If  she  could  go  to  school  four 
years  more  she'd  probably  be  able  to  earn  a 
good  living,  but  she  '11  never  do  very  well  if  she 
stops  school  now,  for  she's  not  strong  enough 
for  heavy  work." 

"It  almost  seems  a  pity,"  Ruth  suggested, 
"that  we've  just  adopted  a  French  orphan. 


FRIENDLY  TERRACE  ORPHANAGE      105 

It  seems  there  are  orphans  right  at  home  who 
need  help  just  as  much." 

Peggy  sighed.  ''I'm  not  sorry  about  the 
French  orphan.  I  suppose  we  can't  imagine 
the  need  over  there.  But  I  do  wish  we  could 
do  something  for  Myrtle." 

"Peggy  Eaymond,"  warned  Amy.  "Don't 
let  your  philanthropy  run  away  with  you,  and 
get  the  idea  that  we  're  an  orphan  asylum.  One 
orphan  is  all  we  can  manage. ' ' 

"Yes,  of  course,"  Peggy  agreed  hastily. 
"Only  I  was  wondering — poor  little  Myrtle!" 

"Can't  her  aunt  afford  to  give  her  an 
education?"  Priscilla  asked,  "Or  is  she 
stingy?" 

"Oh,  I  suppose  it's  pretty  hard  for  Miss 
Burns  to  get  along  with  everything  so  expen- 
sive. She's  not  a  high-priced  dress-maker,  and 
besides  she's  mortally  slow;  one  of  the  putter- 
ing sort,  you  know.  At  the  same  time, ' '  added 
Peggy,  "I  mean  to  see  her  and  have  a  talk 
with  her  about  Myrtle." 

Peggy  was  as  good  as  her  word.  As  post- 
ponement was  never  one  of  her  weaknesses, 
she  saw  Miss  Burns  the  following  day,  and 


106  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

the  faded  little  spinster  shed  tears  as  she  dis- 
cussed Myrtle's  future. 

"Of  course  I  know  she  ought  to  go  on 
through  high  school, ' '  she  sobbed.  *  *  She 's  been 
at  the  head  of  her  class  right  up  through  the 
grades,  and  if  she  could  finish  high  school,  she 
wouldn't  need  to  ask  any  odds  of  anybody. 
But  I've  laid  awake  night  after  night  thinking, 
and  I  can't  see  my  way  to  do  it." 

"If  you  had  a  little  help,  Miss  Burns,  I  sup- 
pose you  could  manage,  couldn't  you?  What 
is  the  very  least  you  could  get  along  on  and 
let  Myrtle  stay  in  school?" 

"Why  she  can't  earn  a  great  deal  of  course," 
said  Miss  Burns,  wiping  her  eyes.  "She's 
not  old  enough  for  a  sales-woman,  and  she's 
not  strong  enough  for  any  hard  work,  and  she 
don't  know  anything  about  stenography." 

"And  what  is  the  very  least  you  think  you 
could  take  in  place  of  having  Myrtle  go  to 
work?" 

Miss  Burns  was  one  of  the  people  who  have 
a  constitutional  aversion  to  answering  a  direct 
question,  but  Peggy's  persistence  left  her  no 
loop-hole  of  escape.  Cornered  at  last,  she  ex- 


FRIENDLY  TERRACE  ORPHANAGE      107 

pressed  the  opinion  that  she  could  do  with  a 
hundred  dollars.  For  some  reason  not  quite 
clear  in  her  own  mind,  Peggy  had  hoped  it 
might  be  less,  and  her  face  showed  her  disap- 
pointment. "You  think  that  is  the  very  least 
you  could  get  along  on,  Miss  Burns." 

''I'm  afraid  it  is,  Miss  Peggy.  Maybe  I 
should  have  said  a  hundred  and  fifty.  Look 
at  the  price  of  coal." 

"Oh,  I  know,"  Peggy  agreed.  "Well,  per- 
haps something  will  come  up  so  Myrtle  won't 
have  to  leave  school.  I'm  sure  I  hope  so." 

Peggy  repeated  the  substance  of  her  conver- 
sation with  Miss  Burns  to  her  three  chums  that 
afternoon  as  they  were  on  the  way  out  to  Amy's 
Aunt  Phoebe's.  For  in  their  efforts  to  circum- 
vent the  high  cost  of  living,  the  Friendly  Ter- 
race girls  had  begun  making  weekly  or  even 
semi-weekly  visits  to  the  country.  The  season 
had  been  a  favorable  one  for  all  garden  pro- 
duce, but  Mr.  Frost  was  finding  it  difficult  to 
get  anything  like  the  help  he  needed.  The 
girls  went  out  into  the  garden,  picked  and 
pulled  what  they  wanted,  paid  a  price  which, 
compared  with  the  charges  in  the  retail  mar- 


108  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

kets,  seemed  extremely  reasonable,  and  came 
home  with  loaded  market  baskets  and  a  tinge 
of  sunburn  in  their  cheeks.  The  weekly  saving 
paid  their  car-fare  many  times  over,  and 
the  fact  that  they  all  were  together  lent  a 
festive  air  to  the  enterprise. 

Peggy's  three  friends  listened  silently  to 
their  story  of  her  visit  to  Miss  Burns.  Peggy's 
generosity  was  always  leading  her  to  attempt 
things  far  too  big  for  her.  The  girls  had  stood 
by  her  loyally  in  the  matter  of  the  French 
orphan,  but  there  they  drew  the  line.  A  second 
orphan  was  too  much. 

"I'm  sorry,"  Amy  said,  with  an  air  of  dis- 
missing the  subject.  "But  I  don't  see  that 
we  can  do  anything  for  her. ' ' 

"You  don't  think,  do  you,"  Peggy  hesitated, 
"that  we  could  give  a  little  entertainment — " 

"Oh,  Peggy,  people  are  bored  to  death  with 
benefits  and  drives,  and  to  try  to  raise  money 
for  a  little  girl  nobody  knows  about  would  be 
hopeless,  especially  when  she's  no  worse  off 
than  thousands  of  others." 

"I  suppose  that's  so,"  Peggy  replied,  and 
reluctantly  dropped  the  subject.  Under  her 


FRIENDLY  TERRACE  ORPHANAGE     109 

submission  was  a  persistent  hope  that  some- 
thing might  happen  to  aid  her  in  the  matter 
she  had  so  much  at  heart.  But  the  last  thing 
she  or  any  one  else  would  have  thought  was 
that  such  assistance  would  come  from  Uncle 
Philander-Behind-His-Back. 

Mr.  Frost  had  been  having  an  unusually  ha-rd 
time  with  help  and  was  in  an  exceptionally  bad 
humor.  He  was  one  of  the  men  who,  when  out 
of  sorts,  invariable  relieve  their  minds  by  criti- 
cism of  the  opposite  sex.  He  had  heard  the 
girls  chattering  as  they  picked  the  lima  beans, 
and  doubtless  that  furnished  the  text  for  his 
ill-natured  sermon. 

' '  Women 's  tongues  do  beat  all, ' '  he  declared, 
as  the  girls  came  to  the  house  to  pay  their 
reckoning.  "It's  small  wonder  they  don't 
count  much  when  it  comes  to  work.  They  get 
themselves  all  wore  out  talking.'* 

"I  think  we  do  some  other  things  beside 
talking,"  declared  Peggy,  dimpling  in  a  dis- 
arming fashion. 

"And  I  can't  see  that  we  say  any  sillier 
things  than  men  do, ' '  added  Amy. 

"0,  men  can  talk  or  be  quiet,  just  as  they 


110  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

please,  but  a  woman's  got  to  talk  or  die.  You 
couldn't  pay  her  enough  to  get  her  to  hold  her 
tongue." 

"You  could  pay  me  enough,"  said  Peggy 
with  spirit. 

"Me,  too,"  Amy  cried. 

Uncle  Philander-Behind  His-Back  sneered 
contemptuously.  "Why,  I'd  give  you  four  a 
hundred  dollars  to  hold  your  tongues  for  a 
week. ' ' 

"Girls,"  cried  Peggy  turning  to  her  friends, 
"I  move  we  take  him  up  on  that." 

Had  Uncle  Philander-Behind-His-Back  been 
less  disagreeable,  less  contemptuous,  the  girls 
might  have  hesitated,  for  a  week  of  silence  is 
an  ordeal  to  the  least  voluble.  But  Mr.  Frost 's 
sneers,  combined  with  Peggy's  enthusiasm, 
swept  them  off  their  feet. 

"Yes,  we'll  take  you  up,"  Amy  cried,  and 
Priscilla  and  Euth  nodded  approval. 

Uncle  Philander  was  a  little  taken  aback,  and 
showed  it.  "You  understand  when  I  said  hold 
your  tongues,  I  meant  it.  If  there's  an  aye, 
yes,  or  no  out  of  any  of  the  four  of  you,  it's 
all  off." 


FRIENDLY  TERRACE  ORPHANAGE      111 

"Of  course,"  agreed  the  four  girls  in  chorus. 

Mr.  Frost  was  plainly  growing  nervous.  "Of 
course  I  haven 't  any  way  to  keep  tab  on  you. ' ' 

"Philander,"  cried  his  wife,  bristling  with 
indignation,  "If  you  think  Amy  or  any  of  her 
friends  would  lie  for  the  sake  of  money — " 

"No,  I  didn't  mean  that,"  he  half  apologized. 
"I  put  all  four  of  you  on  your  honor.  Not  a 
word  out  of  you,  not  so  much  as  an  ouch." 

"But  we  can  write  notes  and  explain  to  our 
families,  of  course, ' '  cried  Peggy. 

"Of  course,"  cried  Amy,  as  Mr.  Frost  hesi- 
tated. "And  talk  on  our  fingers.  All  you  said 
was  tongues." 

"You  can  write  all  the  notes  you  want  to," 
conceded  Uncle  Philander  generously.  Now 
that  he  had  time  to  think  of  it,  he  was  con- 
vinced that  the  conditions  he  had  imposed 
could  not  possibly  be  complied  with.  Who  had 
ever  heard  of  four  lively  girls  maintaining  an 
unbroken  silence  for  a  week?  His  hundred 
dollars  was  safe. 

After  some  discussion  it  was  decided  that 
the  week  should  begin  the  following  morning, 
to  give  the  girls  ample  chance  to  explain  their 


112  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

singular  "undertaking  to  their  friends.  And 
then  the  four  started  off  with  their  heavy  bas- 
kets, chattering  excitedly,  as  if  in  the  hopes  of 
saying  in  the  few  hours  remaining  before  bed 
time,  all  they  would  ordinarily  have  said  in  the 
next  seven  days. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE  LONGEST   WEEK   ON  RECORD 

IT  was  a  Thursday  when  the  four  Friendly 
Terrace  girls  entered  on  their  remarkable  con- 
tract with  Uncle  Philander-Behind-His-Back, 
and  Friday  began  the  longest  week  recorded  in 
the  experiences  of  any  of  the  four.  According 
to  the  calendar,  it  contained  only  the  usual 
seven  days.  According  to  the  clock,  each  of 
these  days  consisted  of  the  customary  twenty- 
four  hours.  But  the  four  chums  knew 
better.  It  was  at  least  a  month  long.  They 
had  spent  Thursday  evening  explaining  the 
situation  to  their  friends  and  relatives  and  say- 
ing good-by  as  if  for  a  week's  absence.  It  was 
not  to  be  expected  that  their  news  would  meet 
the  same  reception  in  all  quarters.  Fathers  and 
mothers,  while  not  exactly  approving,  were  on 
the  whole  rather  amused,  and  inclined  to  take 
the  attitude  that  girls  will  be  girls.  Among 
their  friends  outside,  their  announcement  was 

113 


114  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

received  with  a  surprise  that  was  sometimes 
suggestive  of  enjoyment,  and  again  of  indigna- 
tion. 

Peggy  found  Graham  particularly  obdurate. 
"Not  to  speak  to  me  for  a  week?  Well,  I  like 
that!" 

"I  can  write  you  letters,  dear." 

"Letters!"  Graham's  repetition  of  the  word 
was  anything  but  flattering  to  Peggy's  epis- 
tolary efforts.  "Of  course,"  he  went  on  in  a 
milder  tone,  "I  love  your  letters  when  I'm 
away  from  you.  But  to  read  letters  instead 
of  talking  to  you  is  like — like  eating  dried 
apple  pie  in  October." 

"It's  only  a  week,"  said  Peggy,  but  she 
sighed.  And  her  sigh  would  have  been  much 
more  vehement  had  she  dreamed  how  long  that 
week  would  prove. 

Priscilla  writing  a  little  note  to  Horace 
Hitchcock  did  not  sigh  over  the  prospect  that 
she  could  exchange  no  words  with  him  for  seven 
days.  Indeed  she  was  conscious  of  a  profound 
relief.  Recently  Horace  had  taken  up  the  phil- 
osophical style  in  conversation,  and  Priscilla, 
as  she  listened,  frequently  found  herself  unable 


THE  LONGEST  WEEK  ON  RECORD       115 

to  understand  a  word  he  was  saying.  At  first 
she  assumed  that  this  was  due  to  her  not  hav- 
ing given  him  sufficiently  close  attention,  and 
she  had  chided  herself  for  her  wandering 
thoughts.  But  things  were  no  better  when  she 
listened  her  hardest.  Priscilla  knew  that  she 
was  not  a  fool.  She  had  finished  her  junior 
year  in  college,  and  her  class  standing  in  all 
philosophical  subjects  had  been  excellent.  If 
she  could  not  understand  what  Horace  was 
talking  about,  she  felt  reasonably  sure  that  the 
explanation  was  not  in  her  own  intellectual 
lack  but  because  Horace  was  talking  nonsense. 
The  polysyllables  he  used  so  glibly  and  the 
epigramatic  phrases  which  to  the  unthinking 
might  have  seemed  indicative  of  erudition  and 
originality,  when  Priscilla  came  to  analyze 
them  seemed  to  have  no  more  relation  to  one 
another  than  glittering  beads  strung  on  a  wire. 
Priscilla  was  driven  to  the  conclusion  that 
Horace  had  been  reading  literature  consider- 
ably over  his  head,  and  that  he  was  reproducing 
for  her  benefit  a  sort  of  pot-pourri  of  recollec- 
tions, blended  without  much  regard  to  their 
original  connection. 


116  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

But  this  was  not  the  only  reason  why  Pris- 
cilla  had  a  sense  of  relief  in  writing  to  ask 
Horace  not  to  call  for  a  week.  As  the  days 
went  on,  the  thought  of  her  silver  wedding  had 
been  increasingly  painful.  Horace's  affecta- 
tions, to  which  for.  a  time  she  had  deliberately 
closed  her  eyes,  were  continually  more  glaringly 
in  evidence.  Once,  when  they  were  alone,  Pris- 
cilla  had  tremulously  hinted  that  perhaps  they 
had  been  mistaken  in  supposing  themselves 
fitted  for  each  other,  and  Horace's  reception 
of  the  suggestion  had  terrified  her  unutterably. 
He  had  addressed  himself  to  the  stars  and 
asked  if  it  were  true  that  there  was  neither 
faith  nor  constancy  in  womankind.  Then  he 
had  looked  at  Priscilla,  with  an  expression  of 
agony,  and  said,  "I  thought  it  was  you  who  was 
to  heal  my  tortured  heart,  and  now  you  have 
failed  me.'*  But  when  he  began  to  put  his 
hand  to  his  forehead  and  mutter  that  life  was 
only  a  series  of  disappointments  and  that  the 
sooner  it  was  over  the  better,  Priscilla,  white 
to  the  lips  had  assured  him  that  he  had  mis- 
understood her.  Her  efforts  to  restore  his 
serenity  were  not  altogether  successful  and 


THE  LONGEST  WEEK  ON  RECOED       117 

she  did  not  feel  at  ease  about  him  until,  a  day 
or  two  later,  she  saw  his  name  among  the  guests 
at  a  dinner  dance,  at  Mrs.  Sidney  Vanderpool's 
country  house.  But  the  interview  had  con- 
firmed her  certainty  that  there  was  no  escaping 
the  snare  into  which  she  had  walked  with  eyes 
wide  open.  And  for  that  reason  a  week  free 
from  Horace's  society  was  more  than  welcome. 

The  silent  week  starting  Friday  morning  had 
seemed  rather  a  joke  to  begin  with.  At  four 
breakfast  tables,  four  girls  who  contributed  not 
a  syllable  to  the  conversation,  contributed 
largely,  nevertheless  to  the  family  gaiety. 
But  by  noon  the  humorous  phase  of  the  situ- 
ation had  passed,  at  least  for  the  four  chiefly 
concerned.  All  of  them  went  about  with  an 
expression  of  Spartan-like  resolve,  blended 
with  not  a  little  anxiety.  For  when  people 
have  been  chattering  animatedly  every  day  for 
fifteen  or  twenty  years,  it  is  very  easy  for  an 
exclamation  to  escape  their  lips  in  spite  of 
resolutions  to  the  contrary. 

Peggy  probably  had  the  hardest  time  of  any 
one.  For  her  brother,  Dick,  although  fond  of 
calling  attention  to  a  fuzzy  excrescence  which 


118  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

he  denominated  his  mustache,  was  as  fond  of 
mischief  as  he  had  ever  been.  And  while  un- 
doubtedly he  would  have  been  sorry  to  have 
Peggy  break  her  vow  of  silence,  and  lose  the 
hundred  dollars  which  meant  another  year  in 
school  for  little  Myrtle  Burns,  he  nevertheless 
subjected  his  sister  to  any  number  of  nerve- 
racking  tests.  A  crash  as  of  a  falling  body 
in  an  upstairs  room,  a  cry  of  anguish  from  the 
cellar,  a  loud  knocking  on  the  ceiling  of  her 
room  apparently  by  ghostly  fingers,  were  among 
the  devices  Dick  used  for  the  testing  of  his 
sister.  On  each  occasion  Peggy  started  con- 
vulsively, but  somehow  or  other  choked  back 
the  cry  that  rose  to  her  lips,  "Oh,  what  is  it? 
What  is  the  matter?" 

Though  Dick  was  the  only  one  of  the  Ray- 
mond family  who  made  deliberate  attempts  to 
betray  his  sister  into  unguarded  speech,  Mrs. 
Raymond,  innocent  as  were  her  intentions,  was 
almost  as  much  of  a  stumbling-block.  "Now 
what  do  you  think,  Peggy,"  she  would  begin, 
"had  we  better  try  Turners  again  or — "  And 
then  catching  sight  of  the  Joan-of-Arc  expres- 
sion on  Peggy's  face,  she  would  break  off  her 


THE  LONGEST  WEEK  ON  RECORD       119 

question  in  the  middle,  and  cry,  "Oh,  dear,  I 
entirely  forgot !  I  shall  certainly  be  glad  when 
this  ridiculous  week  is  over." 

There  was  one  advantage  in  a  week  of  silence. 
The  girls  were  allowed  to  write  letters,  and  they 
took  full  advantage  of  that  permission.  They 
wrote  to  aunts  and  uncles  and  cousins  and  all 
sorts  of  neglected  relatives.  They  wrote  to 
old  friends,  who  had  moved  to  other  cities. 
They  wrote  to  the  girls  they  had  come  to  know 
in  their  work  as  farmerettes.  They  wrote — 
all  four  of  them — to  Lucy  Haines,  a  country 
girl  they  had  helped  one  summer  vacation,  now 
a  successful  teacher.  If  all  weeks  had  been 
like  this  one,  the  postman  who  collected  the 
mail  from  the  Friendly  Terrace  letter-box 
would  have  needed  an  assistant.  Peggy  also 
wrote  to  Graham  every  day,  and  she  tried  to 
make  her  letters  as  sprightly  and  entertaining 
as  possible,  so  that  he  should  not  miss  their 
daily  talks  so  much.  But  under  the  circum- 
stances there  was  not  a  great  deal  to  tell,  and 
if  it  had  not  been  for  Dick 's  machinations,  which 
Peggy  repeated  in  much  detail,  she  feared  that 
her  missives  would  have  proved  dull  reading. 


120  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Every  afternoon  the  four  girls  met  at  the 
home  of  one  or  the  other  of  the  quartette, 
bringing  sewing  or  fancy  work.  They  usually 
sat  indoors,  for  if  a  neighbor  conversationally 
inclined  had  happened  to  come  along  while  they 
were  occupying  the  porch  the  situation  might 
have  been  embarrassing.  Amy  made  a  valiant 
effort  to  revive  a  finger  alphabet  they  had  used 
in  school  to  carry  on  extended  conversations 
across  a  school  room.  But  though  it  had  not 
taken  long  for  the  girls  to  refresh  their  mem- 
ories of  the  letters,  they  found  it  much  harder 
work  to  converse  after  the  fashion  of  the  deaf 
and  dumb  than  it  had  seemed  when  they  were 
younger,  and  for  the  most  part  conversation 
languished.  They  sat  and  sewed,  each  vaguely 
cheered  by  the  proximity  of  her  fellow  suffer- 
ers, though  all  the  time  conscious  that  this  was 
an  abnormally  long  week. 

But  long  as  the  days  were,  each  came  to  an 
end  in  time.  Amy  had  fallen  in  the  way  of  ap- 
prising Aunt  Phoebe  by  post-card  that  another 
day  had  been  passed  in  silence.  "Tell  Mr. 
Frost  he  might  as  well  make  out  his  check 
now,"  she  wrote  at  the  conclusion  of  the  third 


THE  LONGEST  WEEK  ON  RECORD       121 

day.  "We  haven't  spoken  yet,  and  now  we've 
learned  the  secret,  there  isn't  the  least  danger 
that  any  one  will  speak  before  the  week  is  up." 

As  the  days  went  by,  the  vigilance  of  the 
girls  increased  instead  of  relaxing.  Each 
realized  that  a  single  inadvertent  exclamation 
from  the  lips  of  one  would  render  vain  the 
effort  and  sacrifice  of  all.  This  realization  got 
rather  on  their  nerves,  and  Ruth  particularly, 
showed  it. 

"It's  the  most  absurd  thing  I  ever  heard  of," 
declared  Mr.  Wylie  at  breakfast  one  morning, 
as  Ruth  came  downstairs  heavy-eyed.  "You 
girls  call  yourselves  college  women,  don't  you? 
This  affair  is  worthy  of  a  bunch  of  high-school 
Freshmen. ' ' 

"I  think  Ruth  wants  me  to  remind  you," 
said  Mrs.  Wylie,  as  her  daughter  looked  at  her 
appealingly,  "that  they  mean  to  use  the  hun- 
dred dollars  in  sending  a  little  girl  to  school." 

"But  no  man  in  his  senses  is  going  to  pay 
good  money  for  anything  like  this.  Who  is  he, 
anyway  ? ' ' 

"A  sort  of  Uncle  of  Amy's,  didn't  you  say, 
Ruth?" 


122  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

As  Amy's  relationship  to  Uncle  Philander- 
Behind-His-Back  was  too  complicated  to  explain 
without  the  assistance  of  language,  Euth  con- 
tented herself  with  nodding. 

4 'Probably  he  was  only  joking.  A  hundred 
dollars  is  a  hundred  dollars,  especially  these 
days.  You  oughtn't  to  have  taken  him 
seriously,  Ruth." 

"I  think  Peggy  is  really  responsible,"  re- 
marked Mrs.  Wylie,  with  a  rather  mischievous 
smile,  for  Mr.  Wylie 's  admiration  for  his  son's 
fiancee  was  as  outspoken  as  Graham's  own. 

"Is  that  so,  Ruth?" 

Ruth  nodded. 

"Then  all  I  can  say,"  declared  Mr.  Wylie, 
pushing  back  his  chair  from  the  table,  "is  that 
in  this  matter  my  future  daughter-in-law 
showed  less  than  her  usual  good  horse-sense." 

"I'm  beginning  to  understand  something 
that  always  puzzled  me, ' '  Peggy  wrote  Graham, 
that  same  evening.  "You  know  in  mathe- 
matics they  talk  about  an  asymptote,  some- 
thing that  something  else  is  always  approach- 
ing, but  never  reaches.  That  always  seemed 
so  foolish  to  me,  to  approach  a  thing  con- 


THE  LONGEST  WEEK  ON  RECORD       123 

tinually  and  never  get  there.  But  now  I  under- 
stand. Thursday  is  an  asymptote." 

But  though  Thursday  loitered  on  the  way,  it 
arrived  at  last,  and  four  girls  woke  to  the 
realization  that  it  was  supremely  important— 
the  day  that  either  made  void  or  confirmed  the 
success  of  the  previous  six.  They  spent  the 
morning  characteristically.  Kuth,  who  had  felt 
under  the  weather  for  a  day  or  two,  decided  to 
stay  in  bed,  this  being  a  safe  refuge.  Priscilla 
took  a  basket  of  mending  and  retired  to  her 
room.  Peggy  spent  her  time  at  her  writing 
desk  and  tried  to  collect  some  fugitive  ideas 
into  a  theme  for  her  college  English  work  in 
the  fall.  Amy  devoted  herself  to  making  a 
cake  with  a  very  thick  chocolate  frosting. 

It  happened  that  this  morning  Amy  had  re- 
ceived a  postcard  from  Aunt  Phoebe,  the  first 
reply  to  her  daily  bulletins.  "Glad  to  hear 
you  are  getting  on  so  well,"  wrote  the  old  lady. 

"P quite  nervous."  After  the  cake  was 

finished  and  the  frosting  hardening,  Amy  re- 
solved to  take  Aunt  Phoebe's  card  over  to 
Peggy.  While  they  could  not  talk  it  over,  they 
could  exchange  smiles,  and  probably  a  few 


124  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

ideas  as  well,  through  the  medium  of  a  lead 
pencil.  The  luckless  Amy  picked  up  the  post 
card  and  started  off  in  high  spirits. 

It  happened  that  one  of  the  houses  on  the 
Terrace  had  been  built  with  a  slate  roof,  which 
at  the  present  time  was  undergoing  repairs. 
Amy,  swinging  lightly  along  the  familiar  way, 
gained  rapidly  on  an  old  man  ahead  who 
walked  very  deliberately,  apparently  ex- 
amining the  numbers  of  the  houses.  Amy 
noticed  that,  although  the  sky  was  clear,  he 
carried  a  massive  cotton  umbrella. 

The  old  gentleman  was  just  opposite  the 
house  which  was  being  repaired,  when  one  of 
the  workmen  pulled  out  a  broken  slate  and 
without  even  looking  behind  him,  flung  it  to  the 
street  below.  Amy  saw  the  workman  before 
the  slate  left  his  hand,  and  some  intuition 
warned  her  of  danger.  "Look  out!"  she  cried 
shrilly,  * '  Look  out ! ' ' 

The  old  man  ahead  dodged  back.  He  was 
none  too  quick,  for  the  piece  of  slate,  flying 
through  the  air  with  the  sharp  edge  down, 
dropped  where  he  had  stood  an  instant  before. 
The  old  man  took  off  his  hat  and  ran  his  fingers 


THE  LONGEST  WEEK  ON  RECORD       125 

through  his  hair.  Amy  saw  it  was  Uncle  Phil- 
ander-Behind-His-Back. 

The  discovery,  interesting  in  itself,  meant 
nothing  to  Amy  at  the  moment.  She  uttered  a 
heart-broken  wail.  She  had  spoken  before  the 
week  was  up.  By  her  impulsive  exclamation 
she  had  forfeited  the  hundred  dollars.  Though 
she  knew  acknowledgment  must  be  made  to 
her  partners  in  the  undertaking,  since  as  she 
had  broken  the  spell  the  others  were  auto- 
matically released  from  the  obligation  of 
silence,  to  face  any  of  them  at  that  moment 
seemed  impossible.  Without  a  word  to  Mr. 
Frost,  Amy  wheeled  about  and  started  for 
home,  the  tears  running  down  her  cheeks. 

Breathing  hard',  Uncle  Philander-Behind- 
His-Back  trotted  after  her.  What  he  meant  to 
say  does  not  matter,  since  the  discovery  that 
Amy  was  in  tears  resulted  in  the  inquiry, 
"What  are  you  crying  for,  hey?" 

"I  lost  it,"  Amy  sobbed.    "I  spoke." 

Her  companion  seemed  to  be  deliberating. 
"I  s'pose  you  mean  the  hundred  dollars." 

* '  Of  course  I  mean  the  hundred  dollars.  But 
I  don't  see  how  I  could  have  helped  it.  I 


126  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

couldn't  walk  on  deliberately  and  see  a  sharp 
piece  of  slate  drop  on  a  man's  head." 

"I  came  in  to-day  thinking  I'd  have  a  talk 
with  that  friend  of  yours,"'  said  Mr.  Frost, 
"  seeing  she  seemed  to  be  the  head  one  in  this 
thing.  I  was  going  to  tell  her  that  now  I'd 
thought  it  over,  my  conscience  wasn't  quite 
easy  about  this  agreement  of  ourn.  I  'm  afraid 
it  is  too  much  like  placing  a  bet." 

Amy's  jaw  dropped  as  she  looked  at  him. 
Her  tears  dried  instantly,  the  moisture  evapo- 
rated by  the  fires  of  her  wrath.  But  either  be- 
cause her  usually  ready  tongue  was  out  of 
practise  after  six  days  of  idleness,  or  because 
the  realization  of  the  perfidy  of  the  old  man 
produced  a  momentary  paralysis  of  her  vocal 
chords,  not  a  word  escaped  her  parted  lips. 

"Yes,  it  didn't  look  right  to  me,"  Mr.  Frost 
continued.  "It  was  the  same  as  betting  that 
.you  four  girls  couldn't  keep  from  talking  for  a 
week.  My  conscience  wouldn't  let  me  be  a 
party  to  anything  of  that  sort.  But — " 

The  pause  after  the  "but"  was  prolonged. 
Amy  searched  her  vocabulary  for  words  that 
would  do  justice  to  the  occasion,  but  Uncle  Phil- 


"  '  A    HUNDRED   DOLLARS  AIN'T   ANY   TOO   MUCH   TO   PAY 
FOR    HAVING   YOUR    LIFE    SAVED 


THE  LONGEST  WEEK  ON  RECORD       127 

ander-Behind-His-Back  was  continuing  before 
she  knew  what  she  wanted  to  say. 

"  Having  your  life  saved  is  a  different  thing. 
That  slate  had  an  edge  on  it  like  a  meat  ax, 
and  coming  through  the  air  the  way  it  was,  it 
would  have  cleft  my  head  open  like  it  had  been 
an  egg  shell.  My  widow  could  have  got 
damages  all  right,  but  that  wouldn't  have 
helped  me  out." 

They  had  reached  Amy's  door  by  now. 
"Got  pen  and  ink  handy?"  asked  Mr.  Frost, 
with  a  marked  change  of  manner. 

"Yes,"  said  Amy  tonelessly,  and  opened  the 
door  for  him.  She  led  the  way  to  the  writing 
desk,  and  pointed  out  the  articles  he  required. 
Mr.  Philander  Frost,  seating  himself,  wrote  out 
a  check  for  a  hundred  dollars,  payable  to  Amy 
Lassell  or  order. 

"There,"  he  said  as  he  reached  for  the 
blotter.  "Can't  nobody  no  matter  how  sen- 
sitive their  consciences  are,  find  any  fault  with 
that.  A  hundred  dollars  ain't  any  too  much  to 
pay  for  having  your  life  saved." 

And  then  the  ink  had  a  narrow  escape  from 
being  overturned,  for  Amy  flung  her  arms 


128  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

around  the  old  gentleman's  neck  and  hugged 
him.  "Uncle  Philander!"  she  screamed, 
"You're  a  prince." 

And  that  is  how  little  Myrtle  Burns  was 
assured  of  her  year  in  high  school,  and  Uncle 
Philander-Behind-His-Back  was  adopted,  un- 
reservedly, by  four  unusually  attractive  nieces. 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE  MOST  WONDERFUL  THING  IN  THE  WORLD 

NELSON  HALLO  WELL  had  something  on  his 
mind.  Ruth  had  discovered  it  early  in  the 
evening.  They  had  all  gone  over  to  Peggy's, 
and  there  had  been  the  usual  amount  of  talk 
and  laughter,  but  Nelson  had  hardly  spoken. 
Every  time  she  looked  in  his  direction,  Ruth 
found  his  eyes  upon  her,  and  something  in  his 
manner  said  as  plainly  as  words  could  have  told 
it,  that  he  was  only  waiting  to  get  her  alone  to 
impart  some  confidence  of  more  than  ordinary 
importance.  Ruth  was  not  in  the  least  in- 
clined to  be  self-conscious,  but  for  some  reason 
his  unwavering  regard  made  her  nervous.  She 
was  glad  when  the  clock  struck  ten  and  she 
could  take  her  leave. 

Though  Graham  had  lingered  for  a  little  talk 
with  Peggy,  and  Nelson  and  Ruth  had  the  side- 
walk to  themselves,  the  young  man  seemed  in 
no  hurry  to  relieve  his  mind.  Instead  he 

129 


130  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

walked  at  Ruth's  side  apparently  absorbed  in 
thought.  Ruth,  waiting,  half  amused  and  half 
vexed  by  his  air  of  preoccupation,  pinched  her 
lips  tightly  shut  as  she  resolved  not  to  be  the 
first  to  break  the  silence. 

At  the  door  of  her  home  Nelson  suddenly 
roused  himself.  "May  I  come  in  for  a  little 
while,  Ruth?" 

"Of  course,  Nelson.  It's  Friday.  No 
classes  to-morrow." 

"There's  something  I  want  to  talk  to  you 
about,"  he  said,  and  followed  her  indoors  with 
an  air  of  summoning  his  resolution.  As  Ruth 
turned  on  the  lights  in  the  living  room,  he  drew 
a  letter  from  his  pocket  and  handed  it  to  her. 
"I'd  like  to  have  you  read  that." 

Ruth  seated  herself  by  the  drop  light,  and 
drew  out  the  enclosure.  It  was  folded  so  that 
her  eye  fell  at  once  on  the  signature.  "Why," 
she  exclaimed,  "that's  the  nice  soldier  you  got 
acquainted  with  in  the  hospital." 

"Yes.  The  fellow  from  Oklahoma,  you 
know. ' ' 

Ruth  unfolded  the  letter  and  began  to  read. 
Immediately  her  expression  underwent  a 


THE  MOST  WONDERFUL  THING        131 

noticeable  change.  One  would  have  said  that 
the  letter  annoyed  her,  though  when  at  length 
she  lifted  her  eyes  and  met  Nelson's  expectant 
look,  she  was  laughing.  *  *  Did  you  ever  hear  of 
anything  so  absurd  ?"  she  exclaimed. 

Nelson  cleared  his  throat.  "If  you  look  at 
it  in  one  way,  it's  quite  an  unusual  chance. 
You  see  he's  willing  to  take  me  without  any 
capital — " 

"I  don't  know  what  he  ever  saw  in  you  to 
make  him  think  you'd  make  a  ranchman," 
Ruth  exclaimed.  "I  can't  imagine  you  as  a 
cowboy.  I  suppose,"  she  added  excusingly, 
"that  he's  always  been  used  to  an  out-door 
life  and  it  seems  rather  dreadful  to  him  for  any 
one  to  be  shut  up  in  a  book-store." 

"It  is  rather  dreadful." 

Ruth  gave  a  little  start.  For  a  moment  she 
was  under  an  impression  that  she  had  not 
heard  Nelson  aright,  or  else  that  he  was  joking. 
And  yet  his  voice  had  no  suggestion  of  humor. 
It  was  hoarse  and  curiously  intense,  and  as  she 
looked  at  him,  she  saw  that  his  face  was  un- 
naturally flushed. 

"Why,  Nelson,"  she  cried,  "What  are  you 


132  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

talking  about!     You  can't  mean  that  you  don't 
like  your  work." 

Nelson  looked  at  her  appealingly.  Without 
realizing  it,  Euth  had  spoken  in  a  rather 
peremptory  fashion,  and  at  once  his  sensitive 
face  showed  his  fear  of  having  offended  her. 

' 'I  used  to  think  I  liked  it,  Euth." 

* '  Used  to !    Why,  Nelson— ' ' 

"But  now  it's  like  being  in  a  strait  jacket. 
I  don't  ,see  how  any  fellow  who  was  in  the 
service  can  ever  get  back  to  standing  behind  a 
counter  and  be  satisfied." 

Again  Euth  noticed  the  curious  intensity  of 
his  manner.  She  looked  at  the  letter  lying 
upon  the  table  with  a  feeling  of  irritation  she 
did  not  stop  to  analyze. 

"Nelson,  you  don't  mean  you  want  to  take 
that  offer?  You  wouldn't  really  like  to  go  to 
Oklahoma,  would  you?  Why  it's  the  jumping- 
off  place." 

He  sat  looking  at  the  floor.  "I  wanted  to 
know  what  you  thought,"  he  murmured. 

"I'd  hate  to  say  all  I  thought.  Why,  Nelson, 
I  don 't  believe  it 's  ever  occurred  to  you  what  it 
would  mean  to  your  mother."  Euth  herself 


THE  MOST  WONDERFUL  THING       133 

had  not  thought  of  Mrs.  Hallowell  until  that 
instant,  and  she  made  up  for  her  tardiness  by 
speaking  very  earnestly.  "It  would  simply 
kill  her  to  have  you  off  at  the  ends  of  the 
earth/* 

1 1  Mother 's  pretty  game,  you  know. ' '  Nelson 
smiled  as  if  recalling  something  that  had 
pleased  him  particularly.  "She  says  she 
wouldn't  mind  a  bit  living  in  Oklahoma." 

Euth  swallowed  hard.  Something  in  his 
reminiscent  smile  added  to  her  vexation. 

"I  should  think  you  would  know  better  than 
to  take  her  seriously.  She'd  die  of  homesick- 
ness. But  of  course,  if  you've  really  set  your 
heart  on  going  thousands  of  miles  away  from 
all  your  friends,  I  wouldn't  want  to  put  any- 
thing in  your  way. ' ' 

"Euth,  you  know  I  don't  mean  that."  He 
looked  rather  bewildered  at  her  injustice.  "I 
haven't  answered  the  letter.  I  just  wanted  to 
know  what  you  thought  about  it. ' ' 

"Well,  I  think  the  whole  thing  is  absurd.  I 
suppose  you  are  a  little  restless  after  your 
army  life,  but  you'll  get  over  that." 

"I  suppose  I  will,"    Nelson  acknowledged. 


134  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

He  was  so  humble  about  it  that  Ruth  promptly 
forgave  him  for  having  given  favorable  con- 
sideration to  the*  offer  of  his  friend  in  Okla- 
homa, and  was  her  usual  pleasant  self  during 
the  remainder  of  his  stay. 

As  far  as  Nelson  was  concerned,  the  matter 
was  dropped,  but  unluckily  for  Ruth's  peace  of 
mind  Peggy  was  yet  to  be  heard  from.  The 
next  day  was  Saturday  and  Peggy  dropped  in 
soon  after  breakfast. 

"Ruth,  what  was  the  matter  with  Nelson  last 
evening?  I  never  knew  anybody  to  be  so  quiet. 
I  was  afraid  that  perhaps  something  was  said 
that  hurt  his  feelings.  He's  such  a  sensitive 
fellow." 

"No  indeed,  Peggy.  It  wasn't  anything  par- 
ticular." Ruth  hesitated,  uncertain  whether 
to  let  it  go  at  that,  or  to  explain  the  situation  in 
full.  Her  life-long  habit  of  confiding  in  Peggy 
proved  more  than  a  match  for  her  undefined 
hesitation,  and  she  went  on  to  tell  of  the  letter 
from  Oklahoma  with  its  preposterous  offer. 
She  finished  with  a  little  contemptuous  laugh, 
but  Peggy's  face  was  grave. 

"Did  he  want  to  go,  Ruth!" 


135 


,  he — well,  it  seems,  Peggy,  that  since 
he  got  out  of  the  service  he's  been  sort  of  rest- 
less. He  got  so  used  to  outdoor  life  that  he 
doesn't  enjoy  indoor  work.  But  I  tell  him 
he'll  get  over  that." 

"I  suppose,"  said  the  downright  Peggy, 
looking  straight  at  her  friend,  "that  you  feel 
that  you  wouldn't  want  to  live  in  Oklahoma." 

Ruth  jumped.  Then  as  the  blood  rushed 
tingling  to  the  roots  of  her  hair,  she  turned  on 
Peggy  a  look  of  intense  indignation. 

"Peggy  Raymond,  what  on  earth  are  you 
talking  about?" 

Peggy  sat  without  replying  and  Ruth  con- 
tinued vehemently,  "Of  course  I  like  Nelson 
Hallowell ;  like  him  very  much.  I  consider  him 
one  of  my  very  best  friends.  But  that's  all. 
The  very  idea  of  your  talking  as  if— 

"I  suppose,"  said  Peggy,  as  Ruth  came  to  a 
halt,  "you'd  miss  him  if  he  went  out  West." 

Ruth  brightened.  "Yes,  that's  just  it.  I'd 
miss  him  terribly.  I  really  think  he's  one  of 
the  nicest  boys  I  ever  knew,  and  for  all  he 's  so 
quiet,  we  have  dandy  times  together.  But  as 
for  anything  else — " 


136  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

11  Don't  you  think,"  suggested  Peggy,  as 
Euth  halted  again,  *  *  that  it  seems  a  little  bit  un- 
fair to  interfere  with  Nelson's  future,  just  be- 
cause you  like  to  have  him  dropping  in  every 
day  or  two  and  because  it's  convenient  to  have 
an  escort  whenever  you  want  to  go  some- 
where 1 ' ' 

Euth  found  herself  incapable  of  replying. 
She  sat  staring  at  Peggy  with  a  resentment 
that  she  could  not  have  concealed  if  she  had 
tried.  And  Peggy  quite  unmoved  by  her 
friend's  indignation,  continued  judicially,  "If 
you  were  going  to  marry  Nelson,  you  would 
have  a  perfect  right  to  help  decide  where  he 
should  be  located.  But  it's  considerable  of  a 
responsibility  to  persuade  him  to  turn  down  an 
offer  like  that,  just  because  you're  afraid 
you're  going  to  miss  him  if  he  goes  away." 

Euth  found  her  voice.  "Nelson  Hallowell 
can  do  exactly  as  he  pleases.  He  asked  my  ad- 
vice and  I  gave  it,  but  he  doesn't  have  to  take  it 
unless  he  wants  to." 

"That's  not  fair,  Euth.  However  you  feel 
about  it,  you  know  perfectly  well  that  Nelson 
wants  to  please  you  more  than  anything  in  the 


THE  MOST  WONDERFUL  THING        137 

world.  And  besides,  when  a  friend  asks  you 
your  advice,  you're  supposed  to  think  of  what 
is  best  for  him  and  not  of  what  you  want  your- 
self." 

"Really,  Peggy,"  said  Euth  rather  wither- 
ingly,  "as  long  as  Nelson  is  satisfied  with  my 
advice,  I  can't  see  that  any  one  else  need  take 
it  to  heart." 

Peggy  colored.  It  was  a  fact  that,  relying  on 
long  intimacy  and  close  friendship,  she  had 
said  more  to  Ruth  than  she  would  have  been 
justified  in  saying  to  another  girl.  "Excuse 
me,  Ruth,"  she  answered  quickly.  "I'm 
afraid  I  was  rather  interfering." 

The  effect  of  this  apology  was  peculiar. 
Ruth  burst  into  tears.  "Oh,  don't,  Peggy," 
she  sobbed.  "Don't  act  as  if  it  wasn't  any 
business  of  yours  what  I  did." 

"I'm  afraid,"  owned  Peggy,  "that  I'm  too 
much  inclined  to  think  everything  you  do  is  my 
business." 

"No,  you're  not.  We're  just  the  same  as 
sisters.  And  it  would  kill  me  if  you  washed 
your  hands  of  me." 

Peggy  burst  into  a  reassuring  laugh.    ' '  Small 


138  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

danger  of  that,  dearie.  I'm  likely  to  remain 
Meddlesome  Peggy  to  the  end  of  the  chapter, 
as  far  as  you  're  concerned.  And  I  don 't  know 
what  you're  crying  for,  Euth." 

Ruth  was  not  quite  sure  herself,  but  she  con- 
tinued to  sob.  "Do  you  think  I  ought  to  en- 
courage Nelson  to  go,  Peggy?" 

"I  don't  say  that.  But  it  seems  to  me  you 
ought  not  to  discourage  him,  unless  you  have 
a  good  reason.  And  though  I  don't  know  much 
about  such  things,  it  sounded  to  be  like  a  won- 
derful offer.  What  does  Nelson  think?" 

"I — I  guess  he  thought  so,  too,  but  I  didn't 
give  him  a  chance  to  say  much. "  Euth  dropped 
her  head  upon  Peggy's  shoulder  and  sobbed. 
"Oklahoma  is  such  a  dreadful  way  off." 

"I  know  it  is,"  Peggy  patted  her  shoulder 
tenderly.  "I'd  nearly  cry  my  eyes  out  if  any- 
body I  loved  went  there  to  live." 

"Nelson  is  so  good,  Peggy.  He  wanted  to 
go,  but  he  gave  it  up  just  as  soon  as  he  saw 
I  didn't  like  the  idea.  And  I  know  he  hates 
that  old  book  store." 

Peggy  continued  to  smile  rather  wistfully 
and  to  pat  the  heaving  shoulders  while  Euth 


THE  MOST  WONDERFUL  THING        139 

prattled  on.  "I'm  awfully  selfish,  I  know. 
It's  just  as  you  said.  I  never  gave  a  thought 
to  what  was  best  for  him." 

"I  never  said  that,  Kuth,  I'm  sure." 

"Well,  it's  so,  anyway.  I  wonder  if  he's  an- 
swered that  letter  yet.  I'm  going  to  call  up 
and  see." 

Euth  had  no  need  to  look  in  the  tele- 
phone book  to  find  the  number  of  Flynn's 
book  store.  As  the  hour  was  early,  Nelson 
himself  answered  the  call.  His  politely  inter- 
rogative tone  changed  markedly  as  in  re- 
sponse to  his,  "Hello,"  Kuth  said,  "It's  I, 
Nelson. ' ' 

'  *  Ruth !    Why,  good  morning ! ' ' 

"Have  you  answered  that  letter  from  Okla- 
homa?" 

"No,  I  haven't,  Euth.  But  never  mind  that 
letter.  We  won't  talk  about  it  any  more." 

"I  just  wanted  to  ask  you  not  to  answer  it 
till  we'd  talked  it  over  again,  Nelson." 

He  hesitated  a  moment.  "  I  don 't  see  the  use 
of  that.  I  wanted  to  see  how  you  really  felt 
about  it,  and  now  IVe  found  out." 

"Well,  don't  answer  it  right  away.    That's 


140  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

all.    Are  you  coming  up  to-night,  Nelson?" 

' '  Sure." 

Euth  smiled  faintly  at  the  emphatic  syllable. 
"Good-by,"  she  said,  then  sighed  as  she  hung 
up  the  receiver.  "Well,  it's  all  right,"  she 
told  the  waiting  Peggy.  "I  haven't  done  any 
mischief  that  I  can 't  undo. ' ' 

But  when  Nelson  came  that  evening  he  proved 
unexpectedly  obdurate.  He  showed  an  extreme 
reluctance  to  re-open  the  subject  of  the  Okla- 
homa proposition,  and  roused  Euth's  indigna- 
tion by  hinting  that  the  matter  did  not  concern 
Peggy  Eaymond,  and  he  could  not  see  any  rea- 
son for  her  "butting  in."  And  when  sternly 
called  to  order  for  this  bit  of  heresy,  he  still 
showed  himself  unwilling  to  talk  of  Oklahoma. 

"What's  the  use?"  he  burst  out  suddenly. 
"I  know  how  you  feel  about  it.  I — I — It's 
awfully  hard  explaining,  Euth,  when  I  haven't 
any  right  to — to  say  how  I  feel — but  the  long 
and  short  of  it  is  I  wouldn't  go  to  any  place 
where  you  wouldn't  live." 

He  stopped,  his  face  scarlet  as  he  realized  all 
his  statement  implied.  Nelson  was  keenly  con- 
scious of  his  own  disadvantages.  Graham 


THE  MOST  WONDERFUL  THING        141 

would  soon  be  in  a  position  to  support  a  family, 
but  the  salary  Mr.  Flynn  paid  his  competent 
clerk  made  a  wife  seem  an  impossible  luxury. 
Nelson  regarded  Ruth  as  the  bright  particular 
star  of  the  Friendly  Terrace  quartette.  He 
considered  her  prettier  than  Peggy,  wittier 
than  Amy,  and  more  talented  than  Priscilla. 
For  him  to  aspire  to  be  the  first  in  her  heart 
was  the  height  of  presumption,  in  Nelson 's 
opinion,  and  yet  he  had  just  said  to  her  in 
effect  that  he  would  not  go  to  any  place  where 
she  would  not  go  with  him.  Despairingly  he 
realized  how  poorly  his  presumptuous  speech 
had  expressed  his  attitude  of  worshipful 
humility. 

Then  he  became  aware  that  Ruth  was  looking 
at  him  from  the  other  side  of  the  table,  and 
that  her  manner  lacked  the  indignation  ap- 
propriate to  the  occasion.  She  held  her  head 
very  high,  and  her  eyes  were  like  stars.  Nelson 
suddenly  experienced  a  difficulty  in  breathing. 
His  heart  was  beating  more  rapidly  than  it  had 
ever  beaten  under  fire.  He  heard  himself 
asking  a  question,  the  audacity  of  which 
astounded  him. 


142  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"You  wouldn't  think  of  it,  would  you,  Euth, 
going  out  to  that  rough  cattle  country,  a  girl 
like  you!" 

He  did  not  realize  the  desperation  in  his 
voice  as  he  put  the  question,  but  its  appeal  went 
straight  to  Ruth's  heart.  She  answered  un- 
hesitatingly. "The  place  wouldn't  matter, 
Nelson.  Everything  would  depend  on  the  one 
— the  one  I  went  with." 

It  was  not  an  opportune  time  for  Graham  to 
walk  into  the  room.  And  it  argued  him  obtuse, 
that  instead  of  realizing  he  was  in  the  way,  he 
seated  himself  in  the  easy  chair,  and  proceeded 
to  discuss  a  variety  of  subjects.  Once  or  twice 
Nelson's  answers  suggested  that  his  mind  was 
wandering,  and  small  wonder.  For  when  the 
most  wonderful  thing  in  the  world  has  just 
happened,  it  is  hard  on  any  young  fellow  to  be 
held  up  and  forced  to  give  his  views  on  uni- 
versal training. 


CHAPTER  X 

MISTRESS  AND  MAID 

A  CAREWORN,  anxious  expression  had  come  to 
be  so  much  at  home  on  Priscilla's  countenance, 
that  it  did  not  surprise  Peggy  to  look  from  her 
window  one  Saturday  morning  and  see  Priscilla 
approaching,  her  face  so  lined  by  worry  as  to 
suggest  that  the  heaviest  responsibilities  rested 
on  her  shoulders.  As  she  was  quite  uncon- 
scious of  Peggy 's  observation,  she  did  not  make 
her  usual  effort  to  smile  and  appear  natural. 

"I  wish  I  knew  what  ailed  that  girl,"  thought 
Peggy,  studying  Priscilla's  changed  counten- 
ance with  a  heart-sick  concern.  "She  looks 
years  older  than  she  did  six  months  ago,  and  I 
can't  make  out  whether  she's  sick  or  just  un- 
happy. And  the  worst  of  it  is  that  one  can't 
get  a  thing  out  of  her." 

But  in  this  particular  instance  Peggy  was  to 
have  no  reason  to  complain  of  Priscilla's  reti- 
cence. As  Priscilla  raised  her  heavy  eyes  and 

143 


144  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

saw  her  friend's  face  at  the  window,  her  own 
face  brightened  and  she  quickened  her  steps. 
Peggy  hurried  to  the  door,  and  flung  it  open 
with  an  unreasonable  hope  that  this  interview 
would  end  the  mystery  which  had  baffled  her 
for  so  long.  But  the  perplexity  Priscilla  had 
come  to  confide  was  too  recent  to  explain  her 
worried  air  through  the  months  past.  She  was 
hardly  in  the  house  before  she  burst  out, 
" Peggy,  I'm  in  an  awful  pickle." 
"What's  the  matter?  Can  I  help!" 
"I  wondered  if  you  would  lend  me  Sally." 
"Sally?"  repeated  Peggy  in  accents  of 
astonishment.  For  the  maid-of -all-work  in  the 
Eaymond  household  was  a  possession  of  which 
few  people  were  envious.  Whether  Sally  was 
really  weak  minded  was  a  question  on  which  a 
difference  of  opinion  was  possible,  but  there 
was  no  possible  doubt  of  her  talent  for  doing 
the  wrong  thing  at  the  right  time  or  else,  vice 
versa,  the  right  thing  at  the  wrong  time.  Her 
one  redeeming  feature  was  her  amiability,  but 
as  this  frequently  took  a  conversational  turn,  it 
was  not  without  its  drawbacks.  That  any  of 
her  friends  could  want  to  borrow  Sally,  or  that 


MISTRESS  AND  MAID  145 

any  household  but  their  own  would  put  up  with 
the  blundering,  good-natured  apology  for  a 
domestic  servant,  had  never  entered  Peggy's 
head. 

1 '  Sally, ' '  she  repeated,  still  in  a  tone  of  mysti- 
fication. "Of  course  you  can  have  her  if  you 
want  her,  but  whatever  it  is,  she'll  do  it  wrong." 

"I  suppose  she  could  open  the  door  for  a 
caller,  couldn't  she?" 

"Why,  she  can  open  a  door,  as  a  rule,  but 
just  now  she's  got  a  tooth-ache,  and  her  head 
is  tied  up  in  a  red  flannel,  so  unless  the  callers 
are  people  of  strong  nerves,  they  may  be 
startled. ' ' 

"0  dear!"  Priscilla's  acceptance  of  this  bit 
of  information  was  so  suggestive  of  tragedy 
that  Peggy  was  more  puzzled  than  ever. 
"Who  is  the  caller?"  she  demanded.  "And 
why  in  the  world  do  you  want  Sally?" 

"Well,  it's  quite  a  story,  Peggy.  You  know 
Mother's  away  this  week  and  Martha's  having 
her  vacation,  and  Father  and  I  are  taking  our 
meals  at  the  Lindsays.  And  last  evening 
Horace  Hitchcock  called,  and  it  seems  that  an 
aunt  of  his  is  in  town." 


146  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"Oh!"  said  Peggy.  She  always  made  des- 
perate efforts  to  act  just  as  usual  when 
Horace's  name  was  mentioned,  but  under  such 
circumstances  she  invariably  felt  as  if  a  thick 
curtain  had  dropped  between  her  friend  and 
herself.  "Horace  Hitchcock's  aunt,"  she  re- 
peated, trying  valiantly  to  speak  naturally. 
"Is  she  his  mother's  sister  or  his  father's." 

"Neither  one.  She's  his  father's  aunt,  and 
of  course  she  is  quite  old  and  very  rich,  and  it 
seems  she's  coming  out  to  call  on  me." 

"To  call  on  you,"  Peggy  exclaimed.  "How 
interesting!" 

But  that  adjective  registered  an  exception  to 
Peggy's  usual  frankness.  Had  she  spoken  her 
real  feelings  she  would  have  said,  *  *  How  dread- 
ful ! ' '  For  a  call  from  the  young  man 's  great- 
aunt  seemed  to  imply  that  the  young  man's 
intentions  were  serious,  and  recognized  by  the 
family.  Horace  and  Priscilla!  Peggy  stifled 
a  groan. 

"And  you  see  the  fix  I'm  in,"  Priscilla  was 
explaining  disconsolately.  "Of  course  she's 
used  to  butlers  and  everything,  and  here  I've 
got  to  go  to  open  the  door  myself." 


MISTRESS  AND  MAID  147 

Peggy  listened  wonderingly.  For  even  if 
Horace  Hitchcock  had  been  an  entirely  different 
young  man,  the  necessity  for  opening  the  door 
to  his  great-aunt  would  not  have  impressed  her 
as  a  tragedy.  Priscilla's  intuition  told  her 
what  was  passing  through  the  other  girl's 
mind,  and  she  spoke  a  little  fretfully. 

"Of  course  it's  silly  to  mind,  Peggy,  but  I  do 
mind,  just  the  same.  Mrs.  Duncan  has  a  house- 
ful of  servants,  and  she  thinks  of  women  who 
answer  their  own  door-bell  as  we  think  of 
women  who  take  in  washing."  Priscilla's 
feeling  of  resentment  at  Peggy  was  enhanced 
by  her  own  wonder  at  herself.  The  glamor 
which  had  surrounded  Horace  in  the  first  re- 
newal of  their  childish  acquaintance  had  quite 
disappeared,  and  yet  she  could  not  bear  the 
thought  that  Horace's  great-aunt  might  look 
down  upon  her. 

"Sally  wouldn't  be  the  least  bit  of  good," 
Peggy  declared,  "even  if  it  wasn't  for  the  red 
flannel.  Just  when  I  want  Sally  to  be  on  her 
good  behavior,  she  does  some  perfectly  un- 
heard-of thing.  When  do  you  expect  Mrs. 
Duncan?" 


148  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"Oh,  sometime  this  forenoon.  Horace 
thought  about  eleven.  And  that's  another 

1 

thing  that  puzzles  me, ' '  exclaimed  Priscilla  un- 
happily. "Ought  I  to  dress  up,  do  you  think, 
as  long  as  I'm  expecting  a  call?" 

"I'd  wear  my  blue  serge,  if  I  were  you.  Blue 
serge  is  always  safe  and,  besides,  you  look 
awfully  well  in  that  dress.  And  you  need  not 
worry  about  the  maid.  I'm  it." 

"Why,  Peggy,  what  do  you  mean?" 

"Don't  insult  me  by  asking  for  Sally,  and 
then  pretending  that  I  won't  do.  I've  got  a 
black  dress  and  a  cute  little  ruffled  apron,  and 
I'm  just  aching  to  try  my  hand  at  one  of  those 
fetching  caps  the  maids  wear  in  the  movies." 

"But,  Peggy,  suppose  Horace  should  come 
with  his  aunt ! ' ' 

"You  don't  expect  him,  do  you?" 

"No.  I'm  sure  he  didn't  plan  to  come  last 
evening.  But  he  might  change  his  mind." 

"We'll  keep  on  the  look-out.  If  we  see  a 
lady  arriving  with  a  young  man  in  tow,  I'll 
roll  my  cap  and  apron  into  a  bundle  and  put 
them  under  my  arm.  Then  I  '11  be  your  friend, 
Peggy  Raymond,  making  a  morning  call.  But 


MISTRESS  AND  MAID  149 

if  the  lady  is  alone,  I'm  Margaret,  the  maid." 

Priscilla  was  hardly  arrayed  in  her  blue 
serge  when  Peggy  arrived,  and  the  two  girls 
inspected  each  other  admiringly.  The  Plain- 
ness of  the  blue  serge  set  off  the  long  lines  of 
Priscilla 's  slender,  graceful  figure,  while  the 
little  frilled,  nonsensical  cap  gave  a  charm  to 
Peggy's  mischievous  face.  "You  look  like  a 
queen,"  Peggy  declared. 

"And  you're  darling  in  that  cap.  I'm  afraid 
she'll  suspect  something  the  minute  she  sees 
you. ' ' 

Mistress  and  maid  were  sitting  comfortably 
side  by  side  in  the  dining-room  when  the  door- 
bell rang.  Peggy  started  to  her  feet,  but  Pris- 
cilla clutched  her  arm.  "Don't  go  far,  will 
you,  Peggy." 

"I  don't  want  to  appear  to  be  eavesdropping, 
ma'am." 

"Nonsense:  you  can  pretend  to  be  dusting 
something  out  here.  I  don't  want  you  to  go 
away."  Priscilla  was  experiencing  a  panic  at 
the  thought  of  being  left  to  the  tender  mercies 
of  Horace  Hitchcock's  great-aunt.  She  needed 
the  close  proximity  of  Peggy  to  give  her  con- 
fidence. 


150  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Horace  had  not  accompanied  Mrs.  Duncan. 
She  stood  upon  the  steps,  a  little  withered 
woman,  rather  elaborately  dressed,  and  she 
inspected  Peggy  through  her  lorgnette.  "Is 
Miss  Combs  in?"  she  inquired,  after  finishing 
her  leisurely  scrutiny. 

"I  think  so,  Madame.  Please  walk  in." 
Peggy  ushered  the  caller  into  the  front  room 
and  brought  a  tray  for  her  card.  Her  cheeks 
had  flushed  under  Mrs.  Duncan's  inspection. 
The  small,  beady  eyes  in  the  wrinkled  face  had 
a  curiously  piercing  quality,  and  she  wondered 
uneasily  whether  this  remarkable  old  woman 
could  possibly  have  recognized  that  she  was 
only  masquerading. 

She  carried  the  card  upstairs  to  Priscilla 
who  had  retreated  to  her  room,  the  prey  of 
nerves,  and  brought  back  word  that  Miss  Combs 
would  be  down  in  a  few  minutes.  Then  she 
retired  to  the  adjoining  room  and  began  on  her 
dusting.  She  was  not  sorry  Priscilla  had  in- 
sisted that  she  be  near,  for  she  was  extremely 
curious  to  hear  what  the  visitor  was  going  to 
say. 

Priscilla  followed  Peggy  in  something  like 


MISTRESS  AND  MAID  151 

half  a  minute,  and  greeted  her  caller  sweetly, 
though  with  some  constraint.  Mrs.  Duncan 
looked  her  over  approvingly.  "You're  not  as 
pretty  as  I  expected,"  was  her  disconcerting 
beginning. 

In  the  next  room  Peggy  gasped.  Priscilla 
drew  herself  up  and  blushed  crimson. 

"What  I  meant  to  say,"  explained  the  terri- 
ble old  woman,  "is  that  you're  not  as  pretty  as 
I  expected,  but  much  handsomer.  I  took  it  for 
granted  Horace  would  admire  some  namby- 
pamby  with  a  doll's  face.  I  suppose  you  know 
you're  a  very  striking  type,  don't  you?''' 

"I  can't  say  I've  thought  much  about  it," 
prevaricated  Priscilla. 

"And  you're  going  to  college,"  continued 
Mrs.  Duncan.  "What's  your  idea  in  that?  I 
suppose  you  know  that  if  you  marry  Horace, 
you  ought  not  to  know  too  much. ' ' 

"Really,  Mrs.  Duncan — " 

But  Priscilla 's  caller  was  off  at  a  tangent. 
"You've  got  a  nice-looking  maid!  Have  you 
any  brothers?" 

"No,"  replied  Priscilla  mechanically.  "I'm 
an  only  child." 


152  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"When  you're  married,  Miss  Combs,  take  an 
old  woman's  advice  and  never  have  an  attrac- 
tive maid  about  the  house.  My  married  life  of 
twenty  years  was  reasonably  successful,"  ex- 
plained Mrs.  Duncan  complacently,  "and  I  lay 
it  all  to  my  habit  of  selecting  maids  who  were 
either  cross-eyed  or  else  pock-marked. ' ' 

Prisicilla  felt  that  she  hated  her,  but  as  she 
struggled  to  conceal  her  inhospitable  emotion, 
her  visitor  inquired  blandly,  "What  do  you  and 
Horace  talk  about!" 

"About — Oh,  about  all  sorts  of  things." 
Priscilla  wondered  if  ever  in  her  life  she  had 
appeared  as  inane  and  stupid  as  on  this  mo- 
mentous occasion. 

"I  -can't  understand  him,  you  know,"  ex- 
plained Mrs.  Duncan,  rubbing  her  nose. 
"Sometimes  I  think  it's  because  I'm  a  fool, 
and  sometimes  I  think  it's  because  he's  a  fool. 
I  dare  say  you've  felt  the  same  uncertainty. 
But  we'd  better  talk  of  something  else,  so  you 
won't  look  to  conscious  when  he  arrives." 

"Arrives?"  repeated  Priscilla  blankly. 

"Yes,  he's-  to  lunch  with  me  down  town.    He 


MISTRESS  AND  MAID  153 

suggested  that  I  would  enjoy  taking  him  to — 
what's  the  name  of  the  place?  Oh,  well,  he'll 
know.  Perhaps  you  11  join  us." 

Priscilla  declined  fervently.  Without  saying 
it  in  so  many  words,  she  gave  the  impression 
that  she  had  a  most  imperative  engagement  for 
the  afternoon.  As  she  voiced  her  stammering 
refusal,  she  felt  like  a  criminal  on  the  verge  of 
exposure.  For  when  the  bell  rang  Peggy  would 
answer  it,  and  Horace  would  at  once  recognize 
that  Priscilla 's  attractive  maid  was  no  other 
than  Priscilla 's  bosom  friend. 

But  Peggy,  dusting'  industriously  in  the  ad- 
joining room,  had  overheard  the  news  that  had 
carried  consternation  to  Priscilla 's  soul,  and 
acted  upon  the  hint  with  characteristic  prompt- 
ness. A  moment  later  she  appeared  in  the 
doorway,  waiting  unobtrusively  till  Priscilla 
looked  in  her  direction.  And  then  she  said  re- 
spectfully, "Miss  Priscilla." 

Priscilla  struggled  to  play  her  part.  ; '  Yes- 
Margaret?" 

"I  haven't  done  the  marketing  yet.  If  you 
can  spare  me  for  a  little  while,  I'll  attend  to  it." 


154  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

''Certainly,  Margaret,"  replied  Priscilla 
with  boundless  relief. 

As  Peggy  disappeared,  Mrs.  Duncan  leaned 
forward  and  tapped  Priscilla 's  knee.  "I  tell 
you  she's  too  good  to  be  true,"  she  insisted. 
1 1  She 's  too  pretty,  too  well-mannered.  There 's 
something  wrong  somewhere.  Don't  trust 
her."  And  Priscilla  had  to  conquer  the  im- 
pression that  it  was  her  friend  Peggy  who  was 
being  slandered,  before  she  could  assume  the 
nonchalant  manner  suited  to  the  statement  that 
they  had  always  found  Margaret  a  most  trust- 
worthy girl. 

Horace  arrived  some  fifteen  minutes  after 
Peggy's  departure,  and  his  apologies  to  his 
great-aunt  were  more  profuse  than  his  slight 
tardiness  called  for.  Indeed,  as  Priscilla 
watched  his  manner  toward  the  domineering 
old  lady,  she  was  unpleasantly  reminded  that 
Mrs.  Duncan  was  a  rich  widow,  and  that  Horace 
might  cherish  the  hope  of  inheriting  at  least 
a  portion  of  her  wealth.  Priscilla  had  all  the 
contempt  of  a  normal  American  girl  for  a  for- 
tune-hunter, and  her  lover  had  never  appeared 
to  less  advantage  in  her  eyes  than  in  his  ob- 


MISTRESS  AND  MAID  155 

vious  efforts  to  please  his  eccentric  relative. 
In  her  revolt  from  Horace's  methods  she  went  a 
little  too  far  in  the  other  direction,  and  her 
manner  as  she  parted  from  her  guest  was  frigid 
rather  than  friendly.  Mrs.  Duncan's  call  was 
the  first  indication  that  Horace's  people  were 
aware  of  his  intentions,  and  Priscilla  had  a  not 
unreasonable  feeling  of  resentment  at  being 
inspected  to  see  if  she  would  do.  Although 
the  door  had  been  opened  for  Mrs.  Duncan 
by  a  correctly  appointed  maid,  Priscilla  was 
miserably  conscious  that  the  call  had  not  been 
a  success,  and  that  her  unfavorable  impression 
of  Horace's  great-aunt  was  probably  returned 
by  that  terrible  old  person  with  something  to 
spare. 


CHAPTEB  XI 

QUITE    INFORMAL 

AMY'S  memorable  dinner  party,  which  had 
resulted  in  making  Bob  Carey  such  a  frequent 
caller,  was  responsible  for  another  agreeable 
friendship.  Bob's  sister  Hildegarde,  if  she  did 
not  fully  share  her  brother's  sentiments  where 
Amy  was  concerned,  acknowledged,  neverthe- 
less, to  a  thorough  liking  for  the  girl  who  had 
played  the  part  of  hostess  under  such  trying 
circumstances.  She  saw  considerable  of  Amy 
and,  through  her,  had  made  the  acquaintance 
of  Amy's  especial  chums  on  Friendly  Terrace. 
The  girls  all  liked  Hildegarde,  and  Hildegarde 
liked  them,  though  she  was  continually  accusing 
them  of  being  old-fashioned  in  their  ideas. 
Hildegarde  had  rather  more  spending  money 
than  was  good  for  her,  and  her  social  ambitions 
were  the  bane  of  Bob's  existence.  Bob  hated 
formality.  He  never  put  on  his  dress  suit 
except  under  protest,  and  his  popularity  among 

156 


QUITE  INFORMAL  157 

his  sister's  friends,  with  the  resulting  invi- 
tations to  all  sorts  of  affairs,  awakened  his 
profound  resentment.  The  simple  good  times 
of  Amy's  set  where  every  one  came  at  eight 
o  'clock  and  went  home  at  ten,  exactly  suited  him. 

There  was  perhaps  a  spice  of  malice  back  of 
an  invitation  Amy  received  one  morning.  The 
previous  evening  Bob  had  accompanied  his  sis- 
ter to  the  home  of  one  of  her  friends.  He  had 
gone  reluctantly,  only  yielding  when  Hildegarde 
had  agreed  to  start  for  home  promptly  at  ten. 
There  had  been  other  callers,  however,  and 
bridge  had  been  suggested,  so  that  it  was  quarter 
of  one  when  the  brother  and  sister  reached 
home.  Bob  was  frankly  sulky.  "I  hate  to  go 
down  to  the  office  in  the  morning  feeling  like  a 
fool  because  I  haven't  had  sleep  enough,"  he 
declared. 

"Bob  Carey,  any  one  would  suppose  you  were 
an  old  grandfather  to  hear  you  talk.  I  don't 
know  another  fellow  your  age  who  thinks  he 
has  to  go  to  bed  with  the  chickens." 

"And  knowing  the  hours  some  of  your 
friends  keep,"  returned  Bob  irritatingly,  "I'm 
not  surprised  at  their  seeming  lack  of  intelli- 


158  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

gence.  They're  practically  walking  in  their 
sleep." 

"  Please  leave  my  friends  alone.  You 
wouldn't  be  particularly  pleased  if  I  began 
sneering  at  Amy." 

"Sneering  at  Amy!"  Bob's  tone  was  scorn- 
ful as  he  repeated  his  sister's  words.  "If  you 
did,  it  would  be  only  to  get  even  with  me." 

"I  don't  suppose  she's  absolute  perfection." 

"I  don't  know." 

"Oh,  Bob,  don't  be  so  absurd."  But  though 
Hildegarde  ended  with  a  laugh,  she  was  still 
resentful.  She  knew  that  Bob  had  planned  to 
call  on  Amy  that  evening  and  shrewdly  judged 
that,  since  she  had  thwarted  his  intention,  he 
would  go  the  following  night.  Accordingly  she 
called  Amy  on  the  phone  bright  and  early,  and 
invited  her  to  attend  a  down-town  picture  show ; 
not  an  ordinary  movie,  but  a  special  attraction 
with  the  seats  selling  at  regular  theater  prices. 
Amy  exclaimed  delightedly,  and  then  caught 
herself  up. 

"I  forgot  that  Peggy  and  Priscilla  were 
coming  over  to-night.  But  I'm  sure  they'll  let 
me  off.  I'll  call  them  up  and  then  call  you. 


QUITE  INFORMAL  159 

I'm  crazy  to  see  that  picture,  but  I  didn't  ex- 
pect to  for  a  year  or  two  till  it  got  down  to  the 
twenty -five  cent  houses." 

"We'll  ask  Peggy  and  Priscilla  to  go,  too," 
said  Hildegarde. 

"Gorgeous,"  replied  Amy,  "and  it's  so  near 
the  end  of  vacation  we  can  make  it  a  final 
spree";  and  Hildegarde,  smiling  a  little, 
proceeded  to  call  the  two  Sweet  P's  as 
she  mentally  designated  them.  Both  girls 
were  unqualifiedly  delighted  to  accept,  for 
one  of  the  advantages  of  not  possessing  too 
much  money  is  that  the  zest  for  simple  pleasures 
remains  keen.  Hildegarde  had  friends  who 
were  blase  over  a  trip  to  Europe,  and  she 
always  felt  a  little  wonder,  not  without  a  tinge 
of  patronage  it  must  be  admitted,  over  the 
thoroughness  with  which  Amy  and  her  friends 
could  enjoy  things. 

When  Hildegarde  announced  casually  at  the 
dinner  table  that  she  would  have  to  be  excused 
before  the  desert,  as  she  and  Amy  were  to  see 
the  "Star  of  Destiny"  that  evening,  her  brother 
shot  her  a  comprehending  glance.  "I'd  have 
bought  a  ticket  for  you,  Bob,"  Hildegarde  ex- 


160  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

plained  teasingly,  "Only  I  felt  sure  you  meant 
to  go  to  bed  at  nine,  and  make  up  the  sleep  you 
lost  last  evening." 

"You're  always  thoughtful,  Hildegarde," 
said  Bob  with  an  irony  so  apparent  that  his 
mother  stared.  And  Hildegarde  hurrying 
through  her  dinner,  felt  cheerful  certainty  that 
as  far  as  her  brother  was  concerned,  she  had 
evened  the  score. 

The  ' '  Star  of  Destiny ' '  proved  quite  as  thrill- 
ing as  any  of  the  audience  could  have  wished, 
and  the  accompanying  comedy  a  trifle  less  inane 
than  the  average  picture  comedy.  At  ten 
o'clock  the  girls  left  the  theater,  while  the 
crowd  that  had  been  standing  in  line  scrambled 
to  take  the  seats  they  had  vacated.  As  they 
reached  the  sidewalk,  Hildegarde  slipped  her 
hand  through  the  arm  of  Priscilla,  who  hap- 
pened to  be  nearest,  "I'm  on  the  point  of 
starvation,"  she  declared  gaily.  "I  had  to 
hurry  through  my  dinner  so,  I  feel  as  though 
I  hadn't  had  a  thing.  Now  we'll  go  over  to  the 
Green  Parrot  and  get  something  to  eat." 

The  guests  hesitated.  "Is — do  you  think 
it  is  all  right  for  girls  to  go  there  alone 


QUITE  INFORMAL  161 

in    the    evening?"    asked    Peggy    doubtfully. 

"Why  of  course.  The  name's  rather  lurid, 
but  it's  a  perfectly  nice  place.  Let's  take  this 
cross-street  and  then  we'll  save  half  a  block." 

On  the  way  to  the  popular  restaurant,  Hilde- 
garde  did  most  of  the  talking.  None  of  her 
guests  felt  exactly  comfortable  over  accepting 
the  invitation ;  and  yet  to  decline  it,  when  Hilde- 
garde  declared  herself  half  starved,  seemed  de- 
cidedly ungracious.  None  of  the  Friendly 
Terrace  girls  had  been  brought  up  to  think  a 
chaperone  a  necessary  accompaniment  to  all 
youthful  pleasures,  but  venturing  into  a  down- 
town restaurant  at  ten  o'clock  in  the  evening, 
without  either  chaperone  or  escort,  was  rather 
too  up-to-date  to  please  any  of  them.  Peggy 
pictured  Graham's  face  when  she  told  him  of 
the  climax  of  the  evening's  pleasures,  and 
smiled  rather  ruefully. 

Once  inside,  it  must  be  admitted,  the  spirits 
of  all  three  revived.  The  big  room  was  so 
lighted  that  it  was  more  dazzling  than  the  noon 
day.  A  space  had  been  cleared  for  dancing, 
and  several  couples  were  revolving  in  time  to  a 
catchy  popular  air.  The  majority  of  the  tables 


162     ,        PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

were  occupied,  but  the  head-waiter,  who  evi- 
dently recognized  Hildegarde,  led  the  way  to  a 
small  round  table  at  the  side,  and  seated  them 
with  a  flourish.  No  one  had  seemed  to  notice 
them,  and  Peggy  hoped  that  their  incon- 
spicuous location  would  prevent  any  unwelcome 
attention. 

" After  all,"  she  thought  sensibly,  "it's  a 
perfectly  respectable  place,  and  perhaps  it's 
not  considered  queer  for  girls  to  come  alone." 
Unconsciously  her  fear  of  arousing  unfavor- 
able comment  rendered  her  unusually  subdued, 
and  the  other  girls  took  their  cue  from  her, 
speaking  in  their  lowest  voices,  smiling  dis- 
creetly, and  otherwise  conducting  themselves 
with  as  much  decorum  as  if  there  had  been  a 
chaperone  apiece. 

After  some  discussion  they  decided  on  welsh 
rarebit,  and  Hildegarde  also  ordered  coffee  and 
rolls.  The  rarebit  came  in  due  time,  an  island 
of  toast  in  a  seething  lava-lake  of  rarebit. 
The  girls  sniffed  appreciatively  and  exchanged 
smiles.  "To  think  I  didn't  know  I  was 
hungry,"  Amy  exclaimed. 

"I  wish  I  could  make  my  rarebits  smooth  like 


QUITE  INFORMAL  163 

this,"  sighed  Peggy.  "It  looks  so  wonderful 
that  I  hate  to  eat  it." 

Their  faces  cheerful,  but  their  manners  still 
decorously  subdued,  the  four  girls  attacked  the 
dainty  which  has  so  undesirable  a  reputation 
in  the  matter  of  dreams.  Though  Hildegarde 
was  the  only  one  of  the  four  who  had  not  done 
justice  to  her  dinner,  all  were  young  enough 
to  feel  hungry  at  the  sight  of  the  tempting  dish. 
The  islands  of  toast  vanished  as  if  submerged 
by  a  tidal  wave.  The  miniature  lava  lakes 
gradually  disappeared,  and  the  big  plate  of  rolls 
was  so  diminished  by  successive  onslaughts 
that  the  few  remaining  had  a  lonely  look. 

Priscilla  was  buttering  the  end  of  her  roll 
when,  in  involuntary  emphasis  of  something  she 
was  saying,  she  pressed  it  more  energetically 
than  she  realized.  As  if  determined  to  escape 
the  fate  of  its  comrades,  the  fragment  flew 
from  her  fingers.  It  cleared  the  space  be- 
tween that  table  and  the  next  as  if  it  had  been 
winged,  and  then  made  sure  of  escape  by 
dropping  in  the  coffee  cup  of  a  young  man  in 
eye  glasses,  who  was  composedly  eating  fried 
oysters. 


164  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

The  young  man  looked  up,  startled  as  a 
splash  of  coffee  on  his  cheek  challenged  his  at- 
tention. He  looked  about  in  all  directions  and 
at  length  his  inquiring  gaze  came  to  the  table 
where  sat  the  agonized  Priscilla.  Here,  alas ! 
it  halted.  For  as  she  had  seen  the  bewildering 
gyrations  of  the  fragment  of  Priscilla 's  roll, 
Amy  had  burst  into  an  astonished  giggle  and  had 
continued  to  giggle  without  cessation.  Hilde- 
garde,  too,  had  lost  interest  in  the  remnant  of 
her  meal,  and  sat  leaning  her  head  on  her  hand, 
speechless  with  laughter.  As  for  Peggy  and 
Priscilla,  they  were  looking  at  each  other  in 
silent  stupefaction,  their  flaming  cheeks  seem- 
ingly proclaiming  their  guilt.  It  was  no 
wonder  the  young  man  in  eye-glasses  looked  no 
farther.  He  had  found  the  ones  responsible. 

For  an  agonizing  moment  Priscilla  sat  un- 
certain what  to  do.  Then  summoning  her  com- 
mon sense  to  her  aid,  she  turned  to  the  sole  oc- 
cupant of  the  next  table.  "I  am  very  sorry," 
she  said  with  that  dignity  that  was  Priscilla 's 
own.  "A  piece  of  roll  slipped  from  my  fingers 
when  I  was  buttering  it,  and  flew  across  to  your 
table.  It — it  is  in  your  coffee  cup." 


QUITE  INFORMAL  165 

The  young  man  looked  into  his  cup  and  per- 
ceived the  floating  fragment.  When  again  he 
lifted  his  eyes  to  Priscilla 's  he  was  smiling. 
"I  thought  some  acquaintance  had  thrown 
something  at  me  to  attract  my  attention,"  he 
explained. 

"No,"  said  Priscilla.  "It  was  an  un- 
fortunate accident.  I  beg  your  pardon." 
And  then  she  turned  to  her  own  coffee,  and 
seemingly  gave  it  her  attention,  though  so  in- 
tense was  her  excitement  that  she  might  as 
well  have  been  drinking  warm  water  as  the 
coffee  for  which  the  Green  Parrot  was  famous. 

Peggy  was  proud  of  the  dignity  with  which 
Priscilla  had  met  a  difficult  situation,  but  poor 
Priscilla  was  not  to  find  it  easy  to  preserve  that 
dignity.  Amy  was  still  giggling,  her  face 
wearing  an  expression  of  suffering,  due  to  the 
exhausting  effect  of  continuous  laughter. 
Across  the  table  Hildegarde  pressed  her  hand- 
kerchief to  her  eyes  and  moaned  softly.  And 
all  at  once  it  seemed  to  Priscilla  that  she  must 
shriek  with  laughter  or  die. 

A  moment  later  Peggy  uttered  an  ejaculation 
of  consternation,  for  the  tears  were  running 


166  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

down  Priscilla  Ts  cheeks.  She  sat  perfectly 
erect,  her  eyes  upon  the  table,  and  her  only 
sign  of  emotion  those  tell-tale  tears.  Peggy 
was  really  alarmed. 

"Priscilla,  you  mustn't  take  it  so  to  heart. 
It  wasn't  anything.  Don't  cry." 

''But  I  must  do  something,"  responded  Pris- 
cilla  in  a  strangled  voice.  "Oh,  can't  we  get 
away?" 

Her  laughing  companions  sobered  at  the  dis- 
covery that  Priscilla  was  in  tears.  Hilde- 
garde  called  the  waiter  and  demanded  her 
check.  But  before  they  could  get  away,  the 
young  man  in  eye-glasses  had  risen  and  crossed 
to  their  table. 

"I  hope  you're  not  worrying  about  that 
roll,"  he  said,  looking  down  dismayed  at  Pris- 
cilla's  tear-wet  cheeks.  "It's  not  worth  think- 
ing of  twice,  you  know." 

Seeing  that  Priscilla  was  incapable  of  re- 
plying, Peggy  came  to  her  friend's  assistance. 
"Of  course  it  was  only  an  accident,"  she  said, 
"But  it  made  her  a  little  nervous." 

"So  I  see.  I'm  terribly  sorry.  If  I  could 
be  of  any  service — "  The  young  man's  face 


QUITE  INFORMAL  167 

was  troubled,  his  manner  earnest.  Peggy  ap- 
preciated the  sincerity  of  his  feeling,  even  while 
she  longed  to  take  him  by  the  ear  and  lead  him 
to  the  door.  For  heads*  were  turning  in  their 
direction  from  all  over  the  room.  They  were 
the  observed  of  all  observers. 

"Oh,  thank  you,"  said  Peggy  hastily,  "she 
will  feel  all  right  as  soon  as  she  gets  outside. 
This  room  is  so  warm,"  she  added  rather 
inanely.  To  her  enormous  relief  the  waiter 
appeared  with  Hildegarde's  change.  Hilde- 
garde  tipped  him  extravagantly,  rammed  her 
remaining  bills  into  her  purse,  and  all  four 
girls  started  for  the  door.  The  young  man 
with  the  eye-glasses  remained  standing,  staring 
after  them,  and  Peggy's  cheeks  crimsoned  as 
she  realized  the  attention  they  were  attract- 
ing. 

She  was  quite  sure  she  had  a  case  of  hysterics 
on  her  hands  when,  once  outside,  Priscilla  be- 
gan to  laugh.  It  started  in  a  little  smothered 
giggle  which  soon  had  developed  into  peals  of 
laughter.  Peggy  was  terrified.  "Priscilla," 
she  cried,  "for  Heaven's  sake— 

But  Amy  who  had  begun  laughing  sympathet- 


168  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

ically,  as  soon  as  Priscilla  started  off,  checked 
herself  to  remonstrate. 

"Let  her  alone,  Peggy.  All  that  ails  her  is 
she  wanted  to  laugh  and  couldn't,  and  I  don't 
know  anything  that  hurts  worse.  Isn't  that  it, 
Priscilla?" 

Priscilla  could  not  answer  in  words,  but  she 
nodded  vehemently  and  laughed  and  wiped  her 
wet  eyes  and  laughed  on  till  she  sobbed.  And 
then  all  at  once  she  stopped  short,  drew  a  long 
breath,  and  exclaimed,  "I  feel  better." 

They  made  their  way  to  the  street  cars,  dis- 
cussing the  late  unpleasantness  with  much  ani- 
mation and  making  use  of  many  lurid  adjec- 
tives. It  was  Hildegarde  who  exclaimed, 
"Don't  you  wish  you  knew  who  he  was?" 
She  referred,  of  course,  to  the  young  man  in 
eye-glasses. 

Priscilla  stiffened.  "Mercy,  no!  I  hope  he 
was  a  stranger  in  town,  stopping  over  a  train, 
and  that  I  '11  never  lay  eyes  on  him  again. ' ' 

But  that  wish,  though  it  came  from  the 
depths  of  Priscilla 's  heart,  was  not  destined  to 
come  true. 


CHAPTER  XII 

GOOD-BY 

COLLEGE  had  opened;  but  they  had  slipped 
into  it  so  quietly  that  there  hardly  seemed  to  be 
a  break.  For  Peggy  and  Priscilla,  perhaps, 
there  was  a  bit  of  a  pang  at  the  realization  that 
this  was  the  last  year  of  what  would  probably 
be  one  of  the  sweetest  periods  in  their  lives  to 
look  back  on ;  and  they  privately  vowed  to  make 
it  rich  in  experience  and  the  beauty  of  living. 
Ruth  and  Amy,  like  Southey  's  brother  who  said 
that  "no  young  man  believes  that  he  will  ever 
die,"  felt  that  college  life  would  never,  could 
never,  end.  So  a  week  after  the  beginning  of 
classes  found  the  four  girls  trying  conscien- 
tiously to  live  in  the  present,  and  stifling  vague, 
tantalizing  memories  of  the  past  three  months. 

A  number  of  letters  passed  between  Nelson 
Hallowell  and  his  friend  in  Oklahoma  before 
the  great  step  was  decided  on.  And  it  must 
be  confessed  that  in  the  meantime  Ruth's 

169 


170  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

college  work  suffered.  Nelson  came  almost 
every  evening  to  pour  into  her  attentive  ears  the 
story  of  his  hopes  and  ambitions,  and  Euth 
listened  with  the  happy  confidence  that  her  ap- 
proval meant  more  to  him  than  to  any  one  in 
the  world. 

Ruth  and  Nelson  were  living  in  an  enchanted 
world,  where  perfect  understanding  took  the 
place  of  speech.  Nelson  did  not  feel  himself 
at  liberty  to  say  to  her  the  thing  that  was  con- 
stantly in  his  thoughts.  The  salary  Mr.  Flynn 
had  paid  him  had  not  enabled  him  to  save  any 
money,  and  his  venture  in  Oklahoma,  promising 
as  he  believed  it,  was,  after  all,  only  a  venture, 
with  a  possibility  of  failure.  Nelson  knew  that 
he  himself  was  bound  fast  and  irrevocably,  but 
he  wanted  to  leave  Euth  free  as  air.  Yet  he 
talked  to  her  with  the  assurance  that  she  knew 
all  he  was  in  honor  bound  not  to  say,  and  her 
look,  as  she  listened,  confirmed  that  certainty. 

Those  weeks  during  which  the  matter  was 
being  settled  were  a  happy  time  for  both  of 
them.  Youth  has  a  way  of  making  the  most  of 
a  present  joy,  regardless  of  what  the  future 
has  in  store,  and  while  this  seems  very  short- 


GOOD-BY  171 

sighted  to  some  older  people,  who  can  always 
look  ahead  far  enough  to  be  miserable,  the 
young  will  probably  continue  to  enjoy  to-day's 
sunshine — regardless  of  the  weather  prognosti- 
cator,  who  assures  them  of  a  storm  in  the 
middle  of  the  week  with  a  drop  in  temperature. 
Nelson  and  Euth  saw  as  much  of  each  other  as 
they  could,  and  looked  no  further  than  a  happi- 
ness born  of  a  confidence  and  understanding. 

But  the  thing  was  settled  at  last,  and  the 
generous  offer  of  Nelson's  soldier  friend 
definitely  accepted.  Nelson  gave  Mr.  Flynn 
notice,  and  that  irritable  gentleman  promptly 
lost  his  temper,  and  accused  his  reliable  clerk 
of  folly  and  ingratitude.  Later  he  realized  his 
mistake,  and  offered  to  raise  his  salary.  But 
Nelson  was  as  little  moved  by  Mr.  Flynn 's 
smiles  as  he  had  been  by  his  frowns,  and  Mr. 
Flynn  promptly  relapsed  into  his  former  irasci- 
bility. 

"The  war  spoiled  a  lot  of  you  young  fellows. 
You're  sick  of  hard  work.  Loafing  is  the  only 
thing  that  appeals  to  you." 

"I  never  heard,"  laughed  Nelson,  "that  life 
on  a  cattle  ranch  was  considered  a  soft  snap." 


172  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"Well,  if  it  isn't,  you'll  soon  give  it  up, "  said 
Mr.  Flynn  disagreeably.  "An  easy  berth  is 
what  your 're  looking  for,  and  it's  my  opinion 
that  you'll  look  some  time  before  you  find  it." 

The  next  two  weeks  fairly  flew.  Nelson  was 
getting  his  necessary  outfit,  and  every  after- 
noon, on  the  way  home,  he  stopped  to  exhibit  to 
Euth  his  latest  purchases.  And  now  the  time 
had  come  when  it  was  hard  for  Euth  to  smile 
and  show  the  proper  interest.  Sometimes 
when  she  remembered  that  the  decision  had 
been  left  to  her,  and  that  she  had  brought  this 
on  herself,  her  heart  almost  failed  her.  It 
would  have  been  so  much  easier  to  have  gone 
on  in  the  old  way.  The  thought  of  the 
thousands  of  miles  that  would  soon  stretch  be- 
tween Nelson  and  herself  gave  her  a  weak  feel- 
ing in  the  knees.  They  had  a  great  deal  to  say 
in  those  days  about  letters  but  each  realized, 
only  two  well,  that  the  best  letter  ever  penned 
is  a  poor  substitute  for  the  exchange  of  speech 
and  of  smiles. 

The  day  of  Nelson's  departure  Euth  went 
through  the  customary  routine  with  a  curious 
sense  of  unreality.  She  had  suggested 


GOOD-BY  173 

Nelson 's  coming  to  dinner,  but  he  had  declined, 
and  she  would  never  know  what  that  refusal 
cost  him. 

"I'd  love  to,  Ruth.  You  don't  know  how  I'd 
love  to.  But  I  think  I  should  take  my  last  meal 
with  mother. ' ' 

1  'Yes,  Nelson,  I  think  so,  too." 

*  *  She  says  she  won 't  go  down  to  the  station  to 
see  me  off,"  Nelson  went  on.  " She's  been 
keen  about  my  going  from  the  start,  but  now 
that  it 's  come  to  the  point,  it 's  harder  than  she 
thought." 

Ruth  reflected  that  she  could  sympathize  with 
Mrs.  Hallowell  perfectly. 

"The  train  goes  at  ten,"  Nelson  continued 
with  a  sprightly  air  that  would  not  have  de- 
ceived the  most  gullible,  "so  I'll  have  plenty  of 
time  to  bore  you  stiff  before  you  see  the  last  of 
me." 

Ruth  forced  the  smile  his  jest  demanded. 
"You  know  we're  all  going  to  the  station  with 
you,"  she  said.  "Even  Bob  Carey's  coming." 

"I  hope  that  Hitchcock  won't  show  up,"  ex- 
claimed Nelson  apprehensively. 

Ruth  laughed.     "No,  I  don't  think  Horace 


174  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

expects  to  honor  us.  Isn't  it  the  queerest 
thing,"  she  added,  "what  Priscilla  can  see  in 
him?" 

"I  should  say  so.  Priscilla 's  one  of  the 
finest  girls  you'd  meet  in  a  day's  journey,  and 
Hitchcock  is  a  nut.  I  shouldn  't  think  she  could 
stand  it  to  have  him  around.  Though  I  sup- 
pose," concluded  Nelson  with  customary 
modesty,  "that  Priscilla  thinks  just  the  same 
about  you  and  me. ' ' 

"Priscilla!  She  wouldn't  dare."  Ruth's 
indignation  was  so  intense  that  Nelson  shouted 
with  laughter,  but  it  warmed  his  heart,  never- 
theless. 

In  that  last  quick-moving  Saturday,  Euth 
saw  Nelson  for  a  few  moments  in  the  morning, 
and  again  about  three  in  the  afternoon.  His 
stay  was  short  and  rather  unsatisfactory  for  he 
had  some  last  errands  to  attend  to,  and  his 
mind  was  so  full  of  them  that  his  thoughts 
wandered  from  what  he  was  saying,  and  he 
left  his  sentences  unfinished  in  the  most  irri- 
tating fashion. 

After  he  had  answered  a  question  of  Ruth's 
in  a  way  which  showed  he  had  hardly  heard 


GOOD-BY  175 

what  she  had  said,  he  looked  up  quickly  at  her 
half-vexed  exclamation,  laughed,  and  jumped 
to  his  feet. 

''It's  no  use,  Euth,"  he  said.  "I'm  one  of 
the  fellows  who's  good  for  only  one  thing  at  a 
time.  I'll  attend  to  these  thousand-and-one 
things  that  have  been  left  over,  and  I'll  see  you 
about  eight  o  'clock  to-night.  That  will  give  us 
time  for  a  nice  little  visit." 

Up  till  that  time  the  hours  had  fairly  flown. 
Now  they  dragged.  Euth  watched  the  clock 
and  waited  for  the  tiresome,  leisurely  hour 
hand  to  point  to  eight.  The  clan  was  to  gather 
at  a  little  after  nine,  and  she  was  thankful  when 
Graham  departed  for  Peggy's  shortly  after 
finishing  dinner.  Peggy  would  keep  him  till  the 
last  minute.  Peggy  would  understand.  Euth 
had  taken  great  pains  in  dusting  the  living- 
room  that  morning,  and  she  looked  around  it 
thinking  that  it  made  a  picture  of  cosy  com- 
fort Nelson  might  be  glad  to  carry  with  him. 

It  was  eight  o'clock  at  last.  Euth  straight- 
ened a  book  on  the  table,  brushed  a  speck  of 
dust  from  her  gown,  and  sat  down  facing  the 
door.  There  were  quick  steps  on  the  side  walk, 


176  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

and  she  never  doubted  that  they  would  come  on 
up  the  walk,  and  then  up  the  steps,  and  she 
meant  to  have  the  door  open  before  he  had  time 
to  ring.  But  the  footsteps  went  on  and  the 
minute  hand  of  the  clock  was  also  moving. 

At  quarter  past  eight  Euth  was  nervous. 
She  got  up  and  down,  adjusted  the  window 
shades,  changed  the  arrangement  of  the  chairs, 
fussed  with  the  flowers  on  the  mantel,  looked  at 
herself  in  the  mirror,  and  did  something  to  her 
hair.  At  half  past  eight  she  sat  very  still, 
frowning  slightly  and  biting  her  lip.  At 
quarter  of  nine  her  cheeks  had  reddened  and 
she  tapped  the  carpet  with  the  toe  of  her  shoe. 
And  at  nine  o  'clock  her  heart  gave  a  jump  and 
she  forgot  how  near  she  had  come  to  being 
angry.  For  the  footsteps  for  which  she  had 
waited  were  coming  up  the  walk. 

' '  Hello ! "  It  was  Priscilla  's  voice.  ' '  Don 't 
tell  me  I'm  the  first  one." 

' l  The  others  will  be  here  in  a  minute, ' '  Ruth 
replied  in  an  even  voice.  "Come  right  in  and 
take  off  your  coat,  Priscilla,  for  this  room's 
awfully  warm." 

Priscilla  complied  with  her  friend's  sugges- 


GOOD-BY  177 

tion,  and  glanced  at  her  admiringly.  She 
thought  she  had  never  seen  Ruth  look  so  pretty. 
"You've  got  a  lovely  color  to-night,"  she  ex- 
claimed. 

"It's  just  because  it's  so  hot  here.  I  always 
get  flushed  when  I'm  warm." 

Priscilla  was  looking  around  the  room  as 
if  in  search  of  something.  "Why,  where 's 
Nelson?" 

' l  He  '11  be  here  right  away.  You  know  there 
are  always  so  many  things  to  be  attended  to  in 
the  last  few  minutes."  But  though  Ruth 
gave  this  explanation  with  a  matter-of-fact 
cheerfulness  that  deceived  even  Priscilla  who 
knew  her  so  well,  she  was  seething  inwardly. 
So  this  was  all  he  cared.  He  had  sacrificed  their 
quiet  hour  together.  Now  there  would  be  a 
crush  and  a  crowd  and  everybody  talking  at 
once,  and  no  chance  to  say  any  of  the  things 
she  had  saved  up  for  their  last  evening. 

Not  that  she  cared.  Ruth  flung  up  her  head 
and  laughed  gaily  at  something  Priscilla  was 
telling.  Her  hands  were  cold  and  her  mouth 
felt  very  dry,  and  her  heart  was  pounding 
furiously.  Nelson  could  come  when  he  was 


178  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

ready,  and  so  that  he  didn't  miss  the  train,  it 
made  no  difference  to  her. 

Amy  and  Bob  were  next  to  arrive.  Then 
came  Peggy  and  Graham.  " Nelson's  late, 
isn't  he?"  said  Peggy  with  an  uneasy  glance 
at  the  clock.  "He  hasn't  any  time  to  spare." 

"I'll  put  on  my  things  so  we'll  all  be  ready 
to  start  when  he  gets  here,"  Ruth  returned 
casually.  She  had  put  on  a  little  blue  frock,  of 
which  Nelson  was  especially  fond,  for  the  last 
evening,  and  she  was  glad  to  conceal  it  by  a  long 
coat.  Her  hand  trembled  as  she  pinned  her 
hat  in  place.  She  hoped  Nelson  Hallowell 
wasn't  conceited  enough  to  suppose  she  cared 
whether  he  came  at  one  hour  or  another. 

It  was  twenty  minutes  past  nine  when  Nelson 
arrived,  and  he  looked  rather  white  and  shaken. 
As  he  had  left  for  camp  two  years  before,  his 
mother  had  stood  smiling  in  the  doorway  to 
watch  him  go.  When  it  was  whispered  that 
they  were  going  across,  and  he  had  told  her  she 
was  not  likely  to  see  him  again  till  the  war  was 
over,  she  had  kissed  him  with  lips  that  did  not 
tremble.  But  then  she  had'  been  lifted  above 
herself  by  the  exalted  spirits  of  the  times. 


GOOD-BY  179 

Now  she  had  no  sense  of  patriotic  service  to 
sustain  her.  She  realized  that  she  was  no 
longer  a  young  woman,  that  life  was  uncertain, 
and  that  her  boy  was  going  very  far  away. 
Over  their  last  meal  together  she  had  broken 
down,  and  wept  as  Nelson  had  never  seen  his 
mother  weep  in  all  his  life. 

It  is  not  to  Nelson's  discredit  that  he  had 
forgotten  Ruth.  Or  if  that  is  saying  too  much, 
his  thought  of  her  was  vague  and  shadowy. 
Nelson's  father  had  died  when  he  was  a  little 
boy,  and  through  the  years  that  he  was  growing 
to  manhood,  his  mother  and  he  had  been  every- 
thing to  each  other.  The  sight  of  her  grief  was 
torturing.  He  had  put  his  arms  about  her,  and 
comforted  her  as  best  he  could.  He  had 
offered  to  give  up  the  whole  thing,  and  had 
started  to  go  out  to  telegraph  his  friend  in 
Oklahoma  that  he  was  not  coming.  That,  more 
than  anything  else,  had  helped  her  to  regain 
her  self-control.  As  mothers  have  been  doing 
from  time  immemorial  she  wiped  her  wet  eyes 
and  tried  to  smile,  that  he  might  go  on  his  great 
adventure  without  a  shadow  on  his  heart. 
Throughout  that  distressing,  solemn,  sacred 


180  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

time,  it  had  never  occurred  to  Nelson  to  look  at 
the  clock.  The  thought  of  Ruth  had  hardly 
crossed  his  mind.  Even  on  his  way  to  her 
home,  he  was  still  thinking  of  the  mother  he 
had  left. 

It  was  Graham  who,  hearing  Nelson's  step 
outside,  rushed  to  admit  him.  Nelson  entered, 
blinking  a  little  in  the  bright  light  of  the  room, 
and  speaking  first  to  one  and  then  another. 
Euth  in  the  corner  by  the  fireplace  was  talking 
to  Bob  Carey,  and  was  so  interested  that  she 
only  glanced  in  Nelson's  direction,  to  toss  him 
a  smiling  nod,  and  then  resume  her  conver- 
sation with  Bob.  Nelson  gave  a  little  start 
as  if  some  one  had  pinched  him  in  the  mid- 
dle of  a  dream  and  he  had  suddenly  awak- 
ened. 

''Well,  old  man,"  remarked  Graham  cheer- 
fully, "you  haven't  left  yourself  much  leeway. 
It's  just  about  time  to  start." 

"I — yes,  I  suppose  it  is."  Nelson  looked  in 
Ruth's  direction  and  then  looked  quickly  away. 
As  for  Ruth,  she  was  so  absorbed  by  what  Rob 
Carey  was  saying,  that  her  brother  had  to  re- 
peat his  remark  for  her  benefit.  "Come,  Ruth. 


GOOD-BY  181 

Better  get  a  move  on.  We  haven't  any  time  to 
waste.'' 

''Oh,  is  it  really  time  to  start?"  Ruth  asked 
carelessly.  * ' I  hadn  't  noticed. ' '  And  with  that 
fib  on  her  conscience,  she  rose  and  joined  the 
others. 

Fond  as  Peggy  was  of  Ruth,  that  evening 
she  could  have  shaken  her  in  her  exasperation. 
For  on  the  walk  to  the  street-car,  Ruth  clung 
to  her  arm  and  chattered  unceasingly.  As 
Graham  stuck  doggedly  to  Peggy's  other  side 
and  Bob  was  with  Amy,  Nelson  and  Priscilla 
found  themselves  walking  together.  But  since 
Nelson  was  too  dazed  for  speech,  and  Priscilla 
was  wondering  what  Horace  would  say  to  this 
juxtaposition,  they  walked  in  an  almost  un- 
broken silence. 

It  was  no  better  on  the  street  car.  Peggy 
maneuvered  shamelessly  to  put  Nelson  and 
Ruth  into  the  one  vacant  seat,  but  Ruth  slipped 
past  and  took  her  seat  beside  a  fat  woman,  who 
left  so  little  space  that  Ruth  was  in  imminent 
danger  of  falling  into  the  aisle,  whenever  the 
car  turned  the  corner.  In  Peggy 's  opinion  such 
a  catastrophe  would  have  been  no  more  than 


182  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

she  deserved.  Peggy  had  to  take  the  place  she 
had  designed  for  Ruth,  and  did  her  best  to  be 
agreeable,  but  Nelson's  wandering  replies 
showed  the  futility  of  her  efforts. 

A  slight  delay  on  the  way  brought  them  to 
the  station  less  than  ten  minutes  before  train 
time.  Nelson's  tickets  were  bought,  of  course, 
and  his  reservations  made.  They  stood  in  a 
group  in  the  station,  waiting-room  and  said  the 
aimless  things  people  generally  say  five  minutes 
before  train-time.  All  but  Ruth,  that  is. 
When  Nelson  looked  at  her  he  found  her  at- 
tention absorbed  by  an  Italian  family,  whose 
bundles  and  babies  occupied  the  nearest  row  of 
seats. 

It  was  Graham  who  again  took  on  himself 
the  ungracious  duty  of  calling  Nelson's  atten- 
tion to  the  flight  of  time.  "I  guess  you'd  bet- 
ter go  aboard,  Nelson.  You  don't  want  to  stand 
right  here  in  the  station,  and  miss  the  train." 

Nelson  started  violently.  "Oh,  no,"  he  re- 
plied, " certainly  not."  He  turned  to  Bob 
Carey  and  shook  hands  with  him,  murmuring  a 
mechanical  good-by.  Amy  stood  at  Bob's  side 
and  Nelson  held  out  his  hand  to  her. 


GOOD-BY  183 

Amy  had  shared  Peggy's  feeling  of  vexation 
with  Euth,  and  like  Peggy  had  resented  her 
sense  of  impotence.  Neither  one  of  them  would 
have  hesitated  to  take  Euth  roundly  to  task  for 
her  conduct,  but  it  was  impossible  to  scold  her 
in  Nelson's  presence,  and  after  he  had  started 
on  his  long  journey  westward  it  would  be  too 
late.  But  as  Amy  looked  into  the  young  fel- 
low's down-cast  face,  a  brilliant  inspiration 
came  to  her  aid.  She  grasped  his  hand,  pulled 
herself  up  on  tiptoes,  and  kissed  the  astonished 
youth  squarely  on  the  lips.  "Good-by,  Nelson, 
and  good  luck. ' ' 

Peggy,  the  next  in  line,  saw  her  friend's  ruse, 
and  seconded  her  admirably.  It  was  impos- 
sible to  tell  whether  Nelson  blushed  at  the  sec- 
ond kiss,  for  the  flaming  color  due  to  Amy's 
salute  still  dyed  him  crimson.  Priscilla  pushed 
aside  the  obtrusive  thought  of  Horace,  and 
backed  up  the  others.  And  then  Nelson  came 
to  Euth. 

For  a  moment  Euth  had  been  in  a  quandary. 
After  their  warm  friendship,  to  part  with  Nel- 
son with  a  formal  handshake  when  the  other 
girls  had  kissed  him,  would  be  to  proclaim 


184  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

publicity  that  she  was  angry,  and  Euth  did  not 
wish  to  seem  angry,  but  only  indifferent.  And 
yet  if  she  kissed  Nelson  good-by,  she  had  a  sus- 
picion that  the  barrier  her  pride  had  built  be- 
tween them  would  melt  like  mist  in  the  sun. 
She  raised  her  eyes  and  met  his,  those  honest 
eyes  in  which  she  read  bewilderment  and  grief 
and  appeal  and  something  greater  than  all. 
And  then,  all  at  once,  her  resentment  seemed 
incomprehensiblely  petty.  Whatever  the  rea- 
son that  Nelson  had  come  late,  it  was  not  be- 
cause he  did  not  care.  And  so  their  first  kiss 
was  exchanged  in  the  garish  light  of  a  railway 
waiting-room,  with  the  calls  of  the  trainmen 
blending  with  the  unmelodious  crying  of  babies, 
with  travelers  coming  and  going,  and  a  little 
circle  of  friends  standing  by  and  taking  every- 
thing in.  But  there  are  some  experiences  it 
is  impossible  to  spoil. 

"All  aboard,"  cried  Graham,  and  carried 
Nelson  away.  Euth  slipped  her  arms  through 
Peggy's,  and  turned  toward  the  door,  swallow- 
ing hard  at  something  that  refused  to  be  swal- 
lowed. 

"If  ever  a  girl  deserved  a  scolding!"  said 


"SHE    RAISED    HER    EVES    AND    MET    HIS 


GOOD-BY  185 

Peggy  in  the  tenderest  tones  imaginable.  "But 
I'm  not  going  to  do  it  now,  because  at  the  last 
minute  you  redeemed  yourself — thanks  to 
Amy. ' ' 


CHAPTEE  XIII 

PEGGY    GIVES    A    DINNER    PARTY 

RUTH  moped  after  Nelson's  departure.  Just 
how  much  her  depression  was  due  to  missing 
him,  and  how  much  was  the  the  result  of  self- 
reproach,  she  could  not  have  told.  Each  time 
she  realized  his  absence  she  remembered  with 
a  pang  the  hurt  wonder  of  his  face  that  night  in 
the  station.  It  did  not  help  matters  that  Nel- 
son seemed  to  consider  himself  entirely  to 
blame  for  what  had  happened,  and  had  written 
her  from  the  train  a  most  humble  apology  for 
failing  to  be  at  her  home  at  eight  o'clock  as 
he  had  promised.  In  fact,  his  assumption  that 
she  could  not  possibly  be  in  the  wrong  only 
made  Ruth  the  more  conscious  of  her  pettiness. 

It  was  largely  on  Ruth's  account  that  Peggy 
resolved  on  her  dinner  party.  For  after  scold- 
ing Ruth  soundly,  and  giving  her  to  under- 
stand that  she  was  very  much  ashamed  of  her, 
Peggy  had  set  herself  resolutely  to  cheer  her 

186 


PEGGY  GIVES  A  DINNER  187 

despondent  friend.  On  the  Friday  following 
Nelson's  departure  something  went  wrong  with 
the  heating  plant  at  college,  and  the  classes 
were  dismissed  at  ten  o'clock.  At  once  Peggy 
determined  to  celebrate. 

"Father  and  mother  have  gone  away  for 
the  week  end,  and  Dick's  going  home  with  his 
chum  after  school,  and  I  shan't  see  him  till 
bed-time.  Come  to  dinner  all  of  you.  We'll 
have  an  old-fashioned  good  time." 

The  recipients  of  this  invitation  accepted 
promptly.  They  were  in  the  rather  hilarious 
mood  which  for  some  reason  characterizes  the 
most  ambitious  student  when  school  is  dis- 
missed for  the  day,  college  seniors  as  well  as 
kindergarten  tots.  *  *  Only  you  must  let  us  come 
over  and  help  you, ' '  stipulated  Ruth. 

"Yes,  come  on,  and  then  if  anything  doesn't 
turn  out  well,  I  can  blame  some  of  you.  I 
wonder — do  you  know,  I've  half  a  mind  to  in- 
vite Hildegarde  Carey." 

The  others  approved,  especially  Priscilla  who 
had  a  great  admiration  for  Bob's  attractive 
sister. 

"She  took  us  out  that  evening,  you  know," 


188  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Peggy  continued.  "She's  always  been  awfully 
sweet  to  me  and  I've  never  done  anything  for 
her.  The  only  thing — well,  I  feel  a  little  bit 
afraid  of  her." 

"I'll  testify  that  she  can  eat  a  very  simple 
meal  and  seem  to  enjoy  it."  And  Amy  chuc- 
kled as  she  always  did  when  she  recalled  the 
first  time  Hildegarde  had  sat  at  her  table. 

Peggy  laughed  understandingly.  "I  think 
I'll  ask  her.  I've  always  thought  it  was  a  sort 
of  snobbishness  to  be  ashamed  to  give  your  best 
to  people  who  have  more  than  you  do.  Though 
I'm  not  sure  that  a  party  of  girls  will  appeal  to 
her." 

Apparently  she  had  misjudged  Hildegarde. 
For  the  latter 's  tone,  when  she  responded 
to  Peggy's  invitation  given  over  the  phone  a 
few  minutes  later,  was  unmistakably  enthu- 
siastic. 

"A  dinner  party  and  just  girls!  How  cute! 
I'd  adore  to  come,  Peggy,  but  would  it  put  you 
out  if  I  brought  my  friend  Virginia  Dunbar. 
She 's  a  New  York  girl  who 's  making  me  a  little 
visit  and  she's  perfectly  fascinating." 

"Why,  bring  her  of  course.    I  shall  love  to 


PEGGY  GIVES  A  DINNER  189 

meet  her."  Peggy's  hospitality  rendered  her 
response  sufficiently  fervent,  but  as  she  hung 
up  the  receiver,  her  face  wore  a  thoughtful  ex- 
pression. The  little  dinner  party,  which  had 
seemed  pure  fun  when  her  three  chums  were  her 
prospective  guests,  had  become  a  responsibility, 
as  soon  as  Hildegarde  was  added  to  the  number. 
And  with  a  New  York  girl  coming,  it  seemed 
distinctly  formidable. 

It  had  not  previously  occurred  to  Peggy  that 
the  house  was  not  in  suitable  order  for  the 
reception  of  guests,  but  now  as  she  looked  about 
the  dining-room  its  shortcomings  were  pain- 
fully evident.  She  donned  a  long  apron  and 
a  sweeping  cap,  and  set  resolutely  to  work. 
When  the  dining  room  was  swept  and  garnished, 
the  living  room  across  the  hall  suffered  com- 
parison, and  Peggy  gave  that  equally  care- 
ful attention.  And  as  by  this  time  she  was  on 
her  mettle,  she  went  to  work  cleaning  the  silver. 
The  twelve  o'clock  whistles  surprised  her  in 
this  exacting  task,  and  she  swallowed  a  peanut- 
butter  sandwich  by  way  of  luncheon,  promising 
herself  to  make  up  for  this  abstemiousness  at 
dinner,  Peggy  was  not  one  of  the  tempera- 


190  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

mental  cooks  who  cannot  enjoy  their  own  cook- 
ing. 

At  half  past  one  she  hurried  forth  with  her 
market  basket  to  make  the  necessary  pur- 
chases. She  left  by  the  back  door  and  took 
the  key  with  her.  A  little  after  two  she  was 
back  again,  the  loaded  basket  on  her  arm. 
Peggy  set  her  burden  down,  rubbed  her  ach- 
ing muscles,  and  felt  in  her  coat  pocket  for  the 
key.  Then  she  felt  in  the  other  pocket.  Then 
she  continued  to  search  one  pocket  and  then 
the  other,  with  increasing  evidences  of  con- 
sternation. But  it  was  of  no  use.  The  key 
was  gone. 

"I  must  have  had  it  in  my  hand  and  laid  it 
down  on  the  counter  somewhere,"  thought 
Peggy.  1 1  Was  ever  anything  so  exasperating. ' ' 
She  left  the  basket  outside  the  locked  door, 
and  hurriedly  retraced  her  steps.  The  butcher, 
whom  she  had  visited  first,  shook  his  head  in 
answer  to  her  question.  No,  he  had  not  seen 
a  stray  door-key.  It  was  the  same  at  the  gro- 
.cer's,  the  same  at  the  bakery  where  she  had 
bought  Parker-house  rolls.  Peggy  walked  home 
over  the  route  she  had  traversed,  her  eyes 


PEGGY  GIVES  A  DINNER  191 

glued  to  the  side-walk,  but  she  did  not  find  the 
key. 

Ruth  was  waiting  for  her  by  the  front  steps. 
'  '  I  thought  I  'd  come  over  and  help  you.  I  hope 
you  haven't  finished  everything." 

' '  I  haven 't  even  started, ' '  replied  Peggy  in  a 
hollow  voice,  and  explained  the  situation.  Ruth 
was  a  girl  of  resources  and  at  once  she  had  a 
bright  idea. 

"  Peggy,  our  front  door  key  looks  a  good  bit 
like  yours.  Perhaps  it  will  open  the  door. 
I'll  run  over  and  get  it." 

"Then,  fly,"  pleaded  Peggy,  "It's  simply  aw- 
ful to  be  locked  out  of  your  house  when  you  have 
a  million  things  to  do. ' ' 

Ruth  sped  on  her  errand  at  a  pace  which 
satisfied  even  the  impatient  Peggy,  and  re- 
turned with  a  key  which  really  did  look  like 
the  latch  key  with  whose  appearance  Peggy  was 
most  familiar.  Hopefully  she  inserted  it  in 
the  appropriate  key-hole.  Patiently  she  turned 
it  this  way  and  that.  The  latch  key  was  like 
a  great  many  people,  encouraging  one's  ex- 
pectations by  almost  doing  what  it  was  asked 
to  do,  but  never  quite  succeeding.  In  the  end 


192  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Peggy  mournfully  relinquished  all  hope  of  en- 
tering the  house  by  its  aid. 

"I  can't  waste  any  more  time  on  that  key. 
It  won 't  work,  and  I  Ve  got  to  get  in. ' ' 

"How  about  the  windows,"  suggested  Ruth. 

"The  windows  on  the  first  floor  are  all  locked, 
for  I  made  sure  of  that  before  I  started  out." 

"If  we  could  borrow  a  ladder — " 

"I  don't  know  anybody  who  owns  a  ladder. 
No,  there's  just  one  chance  as  far  as  I  can 
see.  I've  always  wondered  if  I  could  get  in 
through  the  coal  shute  and  now  I'm  going  to 
see." 

"But,  Peggy,  it's  so  dirty." 

"I  know,  but  it's  got  to  be  done." 

' '  You  might  get  stuck, ' '  exclaimed  Ruth,  turn- 
ing pale.  "Wait  a  little,  Peggy.  Perhaps 
something  will  happen." 

"Unless  an  air  ship  comes  along  and  takes 
me  to  a  second  story  window,  I  can't  think  of 
anything  that  could  happen  that  would  be  of 
any  help  to  me." 

The  narrow,  inclined  passage  through  which 
the  coal  was  chuted  from  the  side  walk  to  the 
crellar  bin,  looked  small  enough  and  black  enough 


PEGGY  GIVES  A  DINNER  193 

to  justify  Ruth's  forebodings.  But  Peggy's  im- 
patience had  reached  the  point  where  anything 
seemed  better  than  inaction.  She  lowered  her- 
self into  the  chute,  and  when  she  released  her 
hold  of  the  edge,  her  descent  was  so  rapid  that 
Ruth  shrieked.  But  after  a  moment  of  sus- 
pense she  heard  an  encouraging  rattle  of  coal, 
and  then  steps  slowly  ascending  the  cellar  steps. 
A  little  later  the  front  door  was  shaken  vio- 
lently without  opening,  however,  and  Peggy's 
face  presently  appeared  at  one  of  the  living- 
room  windows.  Regardless  of  the  fact  that 
her  friend  was  attempting  to  tell  her  something, 
Ruth  screamed  with  laughter,  for  Peggy's  face 
was  so  begrimed  as  to  suggest  that  her  habitual 
occupation  was  that  of  a  chimney-sweep.  Ruth's 
laughter  was  short-lived,  however,  for  raising 
her  voice,  Peggy  made  herself  heard,  and  with 
an  accent  of  authority  by  no  means  character- 
istic. 

*  *  Stop  laughing,  Ruth,  and  help  me.  In  fool- 
ing with  your  key  I've  done  something  to  that 
wretched  lock,  and  now  I  can't  open  the  door 
even  from  the  inside." 

"The  front  door?" 


194  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"I  can't  open  either  door,"  cried  Peggy.  "I 
can't  open  any  door.  The  only  way  to  get  into 
the  house  is  by  the  window,  and  Hildegarde 
Carey  is  coming  to  dinner  and  a  girl  from  New 
York." 

"What  do  you  want  me  to  do,  Peggy?"  Euth 
was  so  carried  away  by  her  friend's  excitement 
that  for  the  moment  she  was  unable  to  see  any- 
thing humorous  in  the  situation. 

"Bring  me  my  market  basket,  first.  It's  on 
the  back  steps.  And  then  find  a  locksmith  and 
bring  him  here.  Don't  be  satisfied  with  hav- 
ing him  say  he  '11  come.  Bring  him  with  you. ' ' 

Ruth  hurried  to  the  back  of  the  house,  se- 
cured the  heavy  basket,  and  returned  with  it 
to  the  living  room  window.  And  then  she  as- 
tonished Peggy  by  setting  the  basket  down  and 
beginning  to  laugh  hysterically. 

"What  on  earth—" 

"Oh,  Peggy,  please  excuse  me.  I  really  did- 
n  't  mean  to  laugh,  but  honestly  you  're  the  fun- 
niest sight  I've  ever  seen.  You're  striped  just 
like  a  zebra." 

Curiosity  led  Peggy  to  consult  the  mirror 
over  the  mantel.  But  instead  of  laughing  as 


PEGGY  GIVES  A  DINNER  195 

Euth  had  done,   she  uttered  a  tragic  groan. 

"It's  going  to  take  a  terrible  time  to  clean 
that  off,  if  it  ever  does  come  off.  Oh,  Ruth, 
hurry!  When  I  think  of  all  that  will  have  to 
be  done  before  six  o'clock,  my  head  just  whirls." 

Ruth  took  a  hasty  departure  and  Peggy,  hav- 
ing carried  the  basket  to  the  kitchen,  rushed 
upstairs  to  remove  all  traces  of  her  recent  novel 
entry.  As  this  necessitated  an  entire  change 
of  clothing  and  the  use  of  a  prodigious  amount 
of  soap  and  hot  water,  her  toilet  consumed  more 
time  than  she  could  well  spare.  But  at  length, 
clean  and  extremely  pink,  and  attired  in  a  little 
frock  not  too  good  for  getting  dinner  and  yet 
good  enough  to  pass  muster  at  the  table,  she 
rushed  downstairs  and  attacked  her  vegetables. 
And  still  no  sign  of  Ruth,  bringing  the  lock- 
smith. 

About  five  o'clock  Priscilla  arrived  ready  to 
lend  a  hand.  Peggy  answered  her  ring  at  the 
window,  instead  of  at  the  door,  and  after  a 
brief  conversation,  the  tall  Priscilla  made  an 
unconventional  entry.  Amy  arriving  twenty 
minutes  later  was  admitted  by  the  same  en- 
trance. The  girls  made  themselves  useful  and 


196  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

speculated     on    what     was     detaining    Ruth. 

"I  don't  mind  letting  you  girls  in  through 
the  window,"  groaned  Peggy.  "But  it's  dif- 
ferent with  Hildegarde.  And  that  New  York 
girl.  Oh,  heavens!" 

At  five  o'clock  they  were  all  too  nervous  to 
know  what  they  were  doing.  Peggy  set  skillets 
on  the  stove  with  nothing  in  them,  and  snatched 
them  off  again,  just  in  time  to  avert  disaster. 
She  salted  vegetables  and  then  forgot  and  salted 
them  all  over  again.  Priscilla  was  trying  to  set 
the  table,  and  making  a  poor  job  of  it,  as  is 
generally  the  case  when  one  is  doing  one  thing 
and  thinking  of  another.  Amy,  after  going  to 
the  front  window  on  the  average  of  once  in 
every  two  minutes  to  see  if  Ruth  were  coming, 
felt  that  she  could  bear  inaction  no  longer. 

"Peggy,  where's  the  latch  key  to  your  front 
door?" 

"Hanging  on  a  hook  over  by  the  umbrellas. 
But  you  can't  do  anything  with  it.  I  Ve  tried. " 

"What  a  key  has  done  a  key  can  undo,"  re- 
plied Amy,  sententiously ;  and  possessing  her- 
self of  the  magic  piece  of  steel,  she  climbed  out 
of  the  window  and  set  to  work.  For  fifteen  or 


PEGGY  GIVES  A  DINNER  197 

twenty  minutes  she  continued  to  fumble  at  the 
lock  without  results,  and  she  was  on  the  point 
of  deciding  that  she  might  be  putting  in  the  time 
to  better  advantage,  when  something  clicked 
encouragingly.  Amy  turned  the  knob,  and 
squealed  with  delight;  for  the  door  opened. 

Before  she  could  proclaim  her  success,  Pris- 
cilla  had  made  a  discovery.  Lying  across  a 
chair  in  the  kitchen  was  a  garment  of  some 
indeterminate  shade  between  blue  and  black. 
"What's  this!"  asked  Priscilla,  pausing  to 
examine  it. 

"It's  my  old  blue  coat.  But  since  I  came 
down  the  coal  chute,  I  don't  know  as  I  can  ever 
wear  it  again.  It  isn't  worth  sending  to  the 
cleaner's,  and  I'm  afraid  it's  beyond  my  skill." 

"I'll  hang  it  in  the  laundry,"  said  Priscilla, 
and  lifted  the  smutty  garment  daintily  by  the 
tips  of  her  fingers.  The  coat  swung  against 
the  round  of  the  chair  with  a  distinct  clink, 
and  Peggy  looked  up  quickly.  "What  was 
that?" 

"A  button,  wasn't  it?" 

"The  buttons  are  cloth.  And  that  was  such 
a  queer  sound — like  metal." 


198  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Priscilla  had  a  brilliant  idea.     Disregarding 
the  fact  that  the  coal  dust  with  which  the  gar- 
ment was  covered  came  off  on  her  hands,  she 
began  eagerly  feeling  along  the  lower  edge. 
And  just  as  Amy  heard  the  click  that  meant 
victory,  Priscilla  uttered  an  ecstatic  cry. 
1  *  The  key,  Peggy !    I  've  found  your  key ! ' ' 
"What!    Where?    Oh,  Priscilla,  not  really  ?" 
"  There    must    have    been    a    hole    in    your 
pocket,"  declared  Priscilla.     "The  key  slipped 
down  between  the  outside  and  the  lining.     You 
can  feel  for  yourself.     There's  a  key  all  right, 
and  it's  not  likely  it's  a  different  one." 

"Take  a  knife  and  rip  up  the  lining  at  the 
bottom,"  ordered  Peggy  recklessly.  "Yes,  of 
course  it 's  the  key.  I  wonder  if  I  'd  rather  have 
that  New  York  girl  come  in  by  the  back  door 
or  the  front  window." 

That  query  had  hardly  left  her  lips,  when 
Amy  rushed  in.  "I've  done  it,  Peggy,  I've 
done  it." 

"You  don't  mean  you've  got  the  door  open?" 
"Yes,  I  have.     I  was  just  ready  to  give  up 
and  then  I  tried  again  and  something  clicked 
and  the  deed  was  done." 


PEGGY  GIVES  A  DINNER  199 

1  'And  Priseilla's  found  the  back-door  key. 
Now  Kuth  will  come  with  the  locksmith. " 

They  heard  footsteps  even  as  she  spoke,  and 
then  Ruth's  voice  explaining  to  the  locksmith 
that  the  only  way  to  get  into  the  house  was  by 
the  window.  Peggy  went  to  meet  them,  assum- 
ing a  very  dignified  air  that  she  might  not  look 
sheepish. 

"We  succeeded  in  opening  the  doors  that 
were  troubling  us,  but  there 's  a  key  broken  off 
in  a  lock  upstairs.  Since  you're  here,  you 
might  as  well  attend  to  that.  Will  you  take  him 
upstair,  Ruth.  It's  the  door  of  the  den."  And 
then  Peggy  beat  a  retreat  to  the  kitchen,  leav- 
ing Ruth  to  propitiate  the  locksmith,  who  had 
left  his  shop  reluctantly,  yielding  to  her  im- 
passioned representations  of  the  urgency  of  the 
case. 

Dinner  was  more  than  half  an  hour  late,  and 
failed  to  justify  Peggy's  reputation  as  a  cook, 
for  some  dishes  were  over-salted  and  others 
entirely  lacking  that  essential  ingredient,  while 
the  pudding  was  so  overdone  that  it  was  neces- 
sary to  remove  the  top  layer,  and  conceal  de- 
ficiencies by  a  quite  superfluous  meringue.  But 


200  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

since  Peggy  had  planned  her  dinner  party  with 
the  purpose  of  distracting  Euth's  thoughts, 
she  had  every  reason  to  consider  it  an  unquali- 
fied success. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

AT  THE  FOOT-BALL  GAME 

THE  foot-ball  season  was  on.  It  had  opened 
auspiciously  when  the  university  had  crush- 
ingly  defeated  the  visitors,  and  the  attendance 
upon  the  second  game  showed  that  the  public 
anticipated  a  similar  victory.  Priscilla,  sitting 
demurely  beside  Horace  Hitchcock,  was  a-tin- 
gle  with  excitement.  Not  for  the  world  would 
she  have  allowed  Horace  to  guess  how  momen- 
tous the  occasion  seemed. 

The  tiers  of  seats  gave  a  dazzling  effect  of 
color.  Pennants  and  flags  and  the  bright- 
colored  hats  of  the  girls  made  Priscilla  think 
of  terraces  covered  with  flowers.  Every  one 
was  talking,  almost  drowning  out  the  noisy  ef- 
forts of  the  Varsity  band.  It  seemed  to  Pris- 
cilla an  unfitting  time  to  quote  Schopenhauer, 
but  the  Schopenhauer  pose  was  Horace's  latest, 
and  it  recognized  neither  time  nor  seasons. 

Priscilla  leaned  impulsively  across  Horace  to 


201 


202  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

wave  to  Amy,  whose  good-humored  face  had 
suddenly  differentiated  itself  from  the  mass  of 
surrounding  faces.  Horace  interrupted  in  the 
midst  of  a  peculiarly  pessimistic  utterance, 
looked  frankly  vexed,  and  Priscilla  apologized. 
" Excuse  me,  I  just  happened  to  see  Amy." 

"It  is  not  a  surprise  to  me,  Priscilla,  to  find 
you  uninterested.  It  is  the  fate  of  some  souls 
to  be  solitary.  Once  I  had  hoped — but  it 
doesn't  matter." 

Priscilla 's  mood  was  a  little  perverse. 
'  *  Perhaps  the  reason  you  're  solitary  is  that  you 
choose  such  unpleasant  paths.  If  you'd  only 
walk  where  it  was  nice  and  sunny,  you'd  have 
plenty  of  company. ' ' 

''Plenty  of  company!  Heavens!"  Horace 
shuddered.  "That  suggests  the  crowd.  It  is 
bad  enough  for  the  body  to  be  jostled,  but  at 
least  the  spirit  can  command  unhampered 
space.  I  had  dreamed  once  that  you  might 
follow  me  to  the  heights  where  the  atmosphere 
is  too  rare  for  the  multitude,  but—  Why  do  we 
cling  to  life,  when  each  hour  that  passes 
shatters  another  illusion?" 

"I'm    sorry    I'm    such    a    disappointment, 


AT  THE  FOOT-BALL  GAME  203 

Horace,"  Priscilla  bit  her  lip.  She  was  young 
and  eager.  She  wanted  passionately  to  be 
happy.  She  longed  to  respond  to  the  charm  of 
the  hour,  to  enjoy  it  ardently,  and  instead  she 
was  obliged  to  listen  to  quotations  from  Scho- 
penhauer, and  think  of  Horace's  lost  illusions. 
The  thought  crossed  her  mind  that  since  she 
could  not  make  Horace  happy  even  for  an  after- 
noon, and  since  he  was  certainly  not  making  her 
so,  it  promised  ill  for  the  future.  If  only 
Horace  could  be  brought  to  see  that  they  had 
made  a  mistake.  A  little  flutter  of  hope  stirred 
in  Priscilla 's  heart. 

Horace  was  speaking  in  a  tone  of  extreme 
bitterness.  ''Blessed  is  the  man  who  expects 
nothing  from  life,  for  he  shall  not  be  disap- 
pointed. ' ' 

''Horace,"  began  Priscilla  firmly.  "Don't 
you  think  that  we — I  mean  wouldn't  it  be 
better—" 

A  number  of  people  were  coming  into  the 
vacant  places  on  her  left.  A  young  man  seated 
himself  beside  Priscilla,  and  involuntarily  she 
turned.  Then  she  gave  an  impulsive  start  and 
her  ready  color  flamed  up.  The  young  man, 


204  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

who  wore  glasses,  also  started  and  after  an 
almost  imperceptible  hesitation  lifted  his  hat. 
Simultaneously  Priscilla  bowed  in  the  most  un- 
responsive fashion  possible,  and  looked  away. 

Horace  stared  suspiciously  at  her  flushed 
cheeks.  Horace  had  never  heard  the  story  of 
the  supper  at  the  Green  Parrot,  and  the  frag- 
ment of  roll  that  had  sought  to  drown  itself  in 
the  stranger's  coffee-cup.  If  Priscilla  had  ever 
taken  him  into  her  confidence,  he  might  have 
guessed  the  explanation  of  her  present 
embarrassment.  As  it  was,  he  leaned  close  and 
said  in  her  ear,  "Who  is  that  fellow?" 

"  Sh !    I  '11  tell  you  afterward. ' ' 

Poor  Priscilla!  The  game  to  which  she  had 
looked  forward  had  become  an  impossible  night- 
mare. Horace's  philosophical  pursuits  had 
not  freed  him  from  that  ready  jealousy  which 
is  the  characteristic  of  small  natures.  He  sat 
glowering  across  Priscilla 's  shoulder  at  the 
young  man  seated  on  her  left.  As  it  was  im- 
possible to  misunderstand  Horace's  expres- 
sion, the  young  man,  after  his  first  recognition 
of  Priscilla 's  presence,  obligingly  ignored  her. 

The    finishing    of    the    first    half    was    an 


AT  THE  FOOT-BALL  GAME  205 

enormous  relief  to  Priscilla.  The  majority  of 
the  seats  in  the  grand-stand  were  immediately 
vacated.  The  flower  bed  had  become  kaleido- 
scopic, with  the  bits  of  color  continually  re- 
arranging themselves,  as  laughing  girls  and 
glowing  youths  moved  about,  excitedly  discuss- 
ing the  points  of  the  game  they  had  witnessed. 
But  though  Priscilla  was  so  ardent  a  fan,  she 
knew  little  of  the  game  and  cared  less. 

The  young  man  at  her  left  had  been  one  of 
the  first  to  rise.  As  he  moved  away,  Priscilla 
turned  to  Horace,  and  without  giving  herself 
time  to  be  frightened  by  his  forbidding  expres- 
sion, she  told  him  the  story  of  her  first  and  only 
visit  to  the  Green  Parrot. 

After  she  had  fiinished,  Horace  seemed  to  be 
waiting  for  more.  "Do  you  mean  that  is  all!" 
he  demanded  at  length. 

"All?    Of  course  it's  all." 
"Then  why  did  you  blush  that  way?" 
The    red    went    out    of    Priscilla 's    cheeks. 
Even  the  color  due  to  the  frostiness  of  the  out- 
door  air  was   replaced  by   an  angry  pallor. 
"Do  you  mean,"   she   said  in  a  level  voice, 
"that  you  don't  believe  me?" 


206  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"A  fellow  crowds  in  and  sits  down  beside 
you,  a  fellow  I've  never  seen.  You  recognize 
each  other  and  then  you  turn  crimson.  You 
refuse  to  give  me  any  explanation  till  enough 
time  has  elapsed  for  fabricating  a  story, 
plausible  from  your  point  of  view — " 

"Horace !" 

''And  you  then  tell  me  a  yarn  that  is  no  ex- 
planation whatever.  What  if  a  piece  of  roll 
did  fly  out  of  your  hand  and  fall  into  some- 
body's coffee  cup!  What  is  there  in  that  to 
turn  you  all  colors  of  the  rainbow?  You're 
stringing  me,  that's  all."  The  Horace  who 
quoted  Schopenhauer,  and  talked  like  the  hero 
of  a  society  novel,  had  magically  disappeared, 
and  in  his  place  was  a  slangy  young  man,  very 
much  like  other  young  men  in  a  bad  temper. 

"Horace,"  said  Priscilla,  her  lips  trembling, 
"I've  been  afraid  for  a  long  time  that  we'd 
made  a  mistake.  I  can't  seem  to  please  you, 
no  matter  how  hard  I  try,  and  probably  it  won 't 
surprise  you  to  know  that  I've  been  perfectly 
miserable  for  the  last  six  months.  And  it 
seems  to  me  the  best  thing  we  can  do — : 

The  people  were  beginning  to  come  back  to 


AT  THE  FOOT-BALL  GAME  207 

their  seats.  A  couple  just  in  front  of  Horace 
and  Priscilla  turned  to  scream  something  to  a 
row  of  young  people  back  of  them.  Priscilla 
tightened  her  grip  on  her  self  control  and 
looked  straight  ahead.  It  was  not  the  time 
nor  place  for  breaking  an  engagement.  She 
must  wait  till  she  could  get  away  from  this 
noisy,  laughing  crowd.  Oh,  if  only  the  dread- 
ful afternoon  were  over. 

The  university  triumphed  again,  as  its 
friends  had  anticipated.  There  was  the  usual 
tumultous  cheering,  the  usual  frantic  demon- 
strations. Priscilla  gave  Horace  the  benefit  of 
a  frigid  profile.  Her  sense  of  indignity  kept 
her  sternly  silent.  He  had  accused  her  of 
lying,  and  that  meant  all  was  over  between 
them.  Underneath  her  hurt  and  humiliation 
was  a  sense  of  relief  she  refused  to  acknowledge 
even  to  herself.  Fortunately  the  young  man  in 
eye-glasses  did  not  return  to  take  the  vacant 
place  at  Priscilla 's  left,  and  the  situation  was 
not  further  complicated  by  his  embarrassing 
presence. 

She  stood  up  as  the  crowd  rose,  thankful  for 
the  prospect  of  escape.  Horace  put  his  hand 


208  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

lightly  on  her  arm.  "Wouldn't  you  like  some- 
thing hot  to  drink!"  he  asked.  "Chocolate  or 
coffee?"  His  tone  was  caressing. 

"I  don't  want  anything  except  to  get  home." 

"Then  we'll  go  home,  little  girl.  I  only 
thought  you  might  be  chilled  sitting  here  in  the 
cold  so  long." 

He  spoke  with  placid  tenderness,  as  if  their 
quarrel  belonged  to  the  Babylonian  era  of 
their  acquaintance.  Priscilla  cast  a  frightened 
glance  at  him.  She  felt  like  a  fly,  partially  dis- 
entangling itself  from  the  spider's  web,  only 
to  find  itself  again  mysteriously  ensnared. 
"Don't,  Horace,"  she  exclaimed  impulsively. 

"Don't  what,  Priscilla  ?" 

"Don't  talk  as  if  nothing  had  happened.  If 
you  believe  that  I'm  a  liar — " 

"My  dear  girl,  don't  be  absurd.  We'd  bet- 
ter not  talk  till  you're  calmer." 

"I'm  as  calm  as  I'm  likely  to  be  when  I'm 
talking  of  this,  Horace.  If  you  think  it  a  little 
thing  to  doubt  my  word,  I  don't  agree  with 
you." 

He  took  her  arm  and  bent  down  till  his  face 
was  very  close  to  hers.  "Can't  you  make  al- 


AT  THE  FOOT-BALL  GAME  209 

lowances,  Priscilla,  for  a  man  crazed  with  love 
and  jealousy?" 

1 1  You  haven 't  any  right — ' '  Her  voice  broke 
in  a  sob.  She  fought  desperately  against  the 
tears  that  placed  her,  she  vaguely  realized,  at 
such  a  serious  disadvantage,  but  they  were  too 
much  for  her.  They  splashed  down  on  her 
white  cheeks,  and  the  couples  crowding  past 
glanced  at  her  curiously. 

"  Forgive  me,  Priscilla.  I  accept  your  ex- 
planation. I  ask  your  forgiveness.  I  am  at 
your  feet." 

She  was  lost  and  she  knew  it,  but  she 
struggled  nevertheless.  " We've  made  a  mis- 
take. We're  not  happy,  either  of  us.  It's 
better  to  stop  now  than  later." 

''Priscilla — are  you  in  love  with  him?" 

Horace's  tone  had  changed  magically.  It 
was  no  longer  tenderly  matter-of-fact,  but 
tragic,  desperate.  She  stared  at  him  aghast. 
"In  love— why,  what,  do  you  mean?" 

"With  that  man  who  sat  beside  you  to-day, 
the  man  who  did  not  dare  come  back  and  face 

me." 

"Horace, — why,  Horace,  you  must  be  crazy. 


210  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

I  told  you  I  had  never  seen  him  but  once  before, 
and  I  told  you  what  happened  then." 

Her  disclaimer  did  not  afford  him  any 
especial  relief.  He  was  muttering  to  himself. 
She  caught  the  words,  "As  well  now  as  later,'* 
and  fear  gripped  her  heart.  He  did  not 
directly  address  her  till  they  had  left  the  field 
behind,  and  were  no  longer  surrounded  by  the 
laughing,  buoyant  throng. 

"I  have  forseen  this,  Priscilla.  I  have 
known  that  happiness  was  not  for  me.  But  I 
have  tried  to  shut  my  eyes  to  the  truth,  to  hope 
for  the  impossible.  Now  you  have  thrown  me 
away  like  a  ripped  glove — " 

"Horace,  I  didn't."  Even  at  this  tragic 
moment  the  thought  crossed  Priscilla 's  mind 
that  instead  of  throwing  away  a  ripped  glove  as 
worthless,  she  would  sit  down  conscientiously 
to  mend  it.  She  brushed  aside  the  reflection 
as  unworthy  the  occasion  and  hurried  on,  "It 
isn't  that.  But  if  we  can't  be  happy  now,  if 
we're  always  irritating  and  hurting  each 
other — " 

"You  don't  need  to  say  more,  Priscilla. 
You  are  weary  of  me.  I  had  dreamed  I  had 


AT  THE  FOOT-BALL  GAME  211 

found  a  soul  capable  of  constancy— but  no 
matter.  This  is  good-by,  Priscilla.  I  cannot 
live  without  you.  When  you  take  away  your 
love  from  me,  you  take  away  all  that  makes  life 
endurable.  All  I  ask  now  is  forgetfulness,  and 
only  death  can  promise  me  that—  Good-by, 
Priscilla." 

Poor  Priscilla!  She  should  have  known 
better.  Long  before  she  had  discovered 
Horace's  weakness  for  posing.  It  was  no 
secret  to  her  that  he  experienced  the  keenest 
satisfaction  in  contemplating  the  ravages 
wrought  in  his  nature  by  successive  disillusion- 
ments.  Yet  though  she  understood,  at  this  crisis 
her  good  sense  failed  her.  In  spite  of  herself, 
she  interpreted  Horace's  speech  by  her  own 
sincerity,  and  a  chill  terror  took  possession  of 
her.  He  would  kill  himself  and  she  would  be  to 
blame.  Although  the  law  would  not  recognize 
her  crime,  at  the  bar  of  her  own  conscience  she 
would  be  adjudged  guilty  of  murder. 

"Horace,"  she  wailed,  "you  did  not  under- 
stand me.  I  want  to  make  you  happy,  that's 
all.  If  you  think  we  haven't  made  a  mistake, 
I'm  satisfied." 


212  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

It  took  a  long  time  to  reassure  Horace.  It 
was  so  hard  to  explain  matters  satisfactorily 
that  it  almost  seemed  as  if  he  were  stupid  or 
else  wilfully  perverse.  Much  of  the  time  he 
stared  blankly  ahead,  so  lost  in  gloomy  reflec- 
tions that  she  had  to  speak  his  name  twice,  be- 
fore she  could  attract  his  attention.  His  lips 
moved,  too,  but  without  a  sound,  as  if  he  were 
saying  things  too  dreadful  to  be  heard.  Al- 
together Priscilla  suffered  intolerably  before 
she  could  bring  the  unhappy  young  man  to  re- 
consider his  desperate  purpose. 

At  last  she  was  partially  successful.  He  be- 
came calm  enough  to  listen  to  her  repeated 
assurances  that  all  she  thought  of  was  his 
happiness  and,  though  his  mood  was  still  sober 
when  they  parted,  he  had  given  a  half-hearted 
and  reluctant  promise  that  he  would  surrender, 
for  the  present  at  least,  all  thought  of  doing 
away  with  the  life  he  valued  so  lightly. 

Priscilla  was  not  sure  how  she  got  through 
the  rest  of  the  day.  Her  mother  noticed  her 
abstraction  and  speculated  hopefully  as  to 
whether  she  had  quarreled  with  Horace. 
While  Priscilla  ys  parents  had  never  been  let 


AT  THE  FOOT-BALL  GAME  213 

into  the  secret  of  the  engagement,  they  could 
not  be  unaware  of  the  significance  of  Horace's 
attentions.  Like  most  American  fathers  and 
mothers,  they  believed  a  girl  should  be  allowed 
to  choose  her  own  friends,  unless  there  was 
some  decided  reason  to  oppose  her  choice.  Al- 
though neither  of  them  liked  Horace,  the 
reasons  for  their  prejudice  were  too  vague 
and  too  personal  to  constitute  a  ground  for 
opposing  the  intimacy.  Moreover,  both  of 
Priscilla's  parents  were  of  the  opinion  that  if 
she  saw  enough  of  the  young  man  she  would  tire 
of  the  mannerisms  they  found  so  objectionable. 

It  was  not  till  Priscilla  was  safe  in  bed  that 
she  dared  relieve  her  over-burdened  heart  by 
tears.  And  as  she  lay  sobbing  with  the  cover- 
let over  her  head,  she  solemnly  relinquished  all 
hope  of  happiness  in  this  world. 

"It  was  my  vanity  that  got  me  into  this," 
lamented  Priscilla.  ' '  I  didn  't  like  to  feel  I  was 
less  attractive  than  the  other  girls  and  so  I 
fairly  snatched  at  Horace.  Now  I've  got  to 
stand  by  my  promise  if  it  kills  me,  but  Oh,  how 
am  I  going  to  bear  it!" 

So    Priscilla    cried   herself   to    sleep.    And 


214  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

there  was  an  added  poignancy  in  her  grief  as 
she  remembered  that  the  Combs  family  was 
notably  long-lived,  boasting  some  distant 
ancestors  who  had  rounded  out  a  full  century 
of  existence. 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE  CURE 

THEY  were  out  for  a  walk  one  Saturday 
evening,  Peggy  and  Amy,  with  Graham  and 
Bob  in  attendance,  when  in  front  of  a  little 
movie  theater,  Peggy  stopped  short.  A  young 
couple  stood  at  the  ticket  booth,  the  girl 
giggling  vacuously  as  the  very  slender  youth 
fumbled  in  his  pockets  for  the  price  of 
admission.  Peggy's  abrupt  halt  was  not  due 
to  the  charm  of  the  flaring  poster,  representing 
a  fat  woman  with  a  broom  in  pursuit  of  a  thin 
man  attired  in  a  bath-robe.  Her  attention  was 
absorbed  by  the  young  couple,  who  were  plan- 
ning to  enjoy  the  show.  For  while  she  had 
never  seen  the  girl  before,  the  slender  youth 
was  her  younger  brother,  Dick. 

As  the  two  disappeared  behind  the  swing- 
ing doors,  Peggy  turned  to  her  companions. 
"Think  you  could  stand  it!"  She  indicated 
the  poster  by  a  gesture,  and  Bob  Carey,  who 

215 


216  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

did  not  have  the  pleasure  of  Dick's  acquaint- 
ance, looked  surprised,  while  Graham's  face 
wore  an  expression  of  doubt. 

"I've  seen  just  as  bad,  Peggy,  and  still  sur- 
vive," Graham  said.  "But  I  hardly  think — " 

"Of  course  we  can  stand  it,  if  you'd  like  to 
go  in,  Peggy,"  interrupted  Amy.  And  Bob, 
though  evidently  puzzled  by  Peggy's  taste 
moved  quickly  forward  to  purchase  the  tickets, 
thus  getting  ahead  of  Graham  who  was  still 
inclined  to  remonstrate.  Graham  understood 
that  Peggy  was  not  especially  pleased  to  dis- 
cover Dick  in  company  with  a  girl  she  knew 
nothing  about,  especially  since  her  manner  had 
made  anything  but  a  favorable  impression  in 
the  few  seconds  she  had  been  under  observa- 
tion. But  Dick,  while  considerably  short  of 
his  majority,  was  old  enough  to  resent  inter- 
ference in  his  affairs,  and  Graham  could  not  see 
that  Peggy  would  gain  anything  by  trying  to 
play  detective. 

The  film  which  constituted  the  evening's 
entertainment  was  exceptionally  poor.  .The 
comedy  was  of  the  atrocious,  slap-stick  sort 
that  moves  the  judicious  almost  to  tears  while 


THE  CURE  217 

the  feature  play,  a  melodrama  only  saved  from 
being  a  tragedy  by  an  inconsistently  happy 
ending,  was  frequently  so  overdone  as  to  be  ex- 
tremely funny.  Peggy  paid  comparatively 
little  attention  to  the  drama  as  it  unrolled  be- 
fore her  eyes.  First  of  all  she  set  herself  to 
locate  Dick  and  his  companion,  and  then  to 
evolve  a  plan  of  action  suited  to  the  require- 
ments of  the  case. 

Graham  spoke  confidentially  in  her  ear. 
" Don't  worry,  Peggy.  Every  boy  has  his  silly 
times.  I  did  myself."  Graham's  manner  sug- 
gested that  he  was  speaking  from  the  vantage- 
point  of  discreet  middle  age. 

"Yes,  I  know."  Peggy  did  not  mean  her 
answer  just  as  it  sounded.  She  was  simply 
thinking  of  something  else.  Graham  stared  at 
the  inane  chase,  unfolding  on  the  screen,  where 
a  procession  of  people  ran  into  everything 
imaginable  from  a  peanut  vendor's  cart  to  an 
express  train,  and  presently  tried  again. 
"You  want  to  be  careful,  Peggy.  He's  just  at 
the  age  to  resent  your  trying  to  manage  him." 

"Yes,  I  know,"  whispered  Peggy  again. 
She  was  fully  as  alive  as  Graham  to  the 


218  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

necessity  of  tact.  But  she  was  aware,  too,  that 
all  boys  do  not  pass  through  the  silly  stage  as 
unscathed  as  Graham  had  done.  All  the  loyal 
sister  in  her  was  alert. 

They  sat  through  the  depressing  comedy  and 
the  amusing  tragedy,  and  then  suddenly  Peggy 
rose.  She  had  seen  Dick  on  ahead  getting  to 
his  feet.  In  the  darkness  of  the  picture  house 
there  was  no  danger  he  would  recognize  her. 
Indeed  it  was  unlikely  that  he  would  have  seen 
her  even  if  the  lights  had  been  turned  on,  so 
engrossed  was  he  by  the  plump  little  person 
whose  head  barely  reached  his  shoulder. 

Peggy  and  her  party  were  outside  first.  All 
unaware  of  the  ambush,  Dick  came  blundering 
on.  He  was  talking  fast  and  the  girl  was 
giggling  approval.  Peggy  saw  that  she  was 
all  she  had  feared.  Her  round  cheeks  were 
rouged  so  as  to  give  an  excellent  imitation  of  a 
pair  of  Baldwin  apples.  Between  the  crimson 
circles  her  nose  gleamed  ludicrously  white,  sug- 
gesting a  very  recent  use  of  her  powder  puff. 
Her  bobbed  hair,  together  with  her  diminutive 
frame,  gave  her  a  childish  air,  contradicted  by 
the  shrewdness  of  her  eyes.  Peggy  guessed 


THE  CURE  219 


that  Dick's  friend  was  considerably  his  senior, 
probably  not  far  from  her  own  age. 

Dick  was  laughing  rather  boisterously  at  one 
of  his  own  witticisms,  when  Peggy  touched  his 
arm.  " Hello,  Dick!"  Her  tone  was  non- 
chalant, but  Dick  started,  straightened  himself 
and  .flushed  angrily.  All  his  masculine  pride 
was  up  in  arms  at  the  thought  of  coercion.  But 
Peggy's  matter-of-fact  air  partly  allayed  his 
suspicions. 

"We  sat  about  six  rows  back  of  you,"  she 
explained.  "Dick,  you  haven't  met  Mr.  Carey, 
have  you?  My  brother,  Eichard,  Bob." 

The  two  shook  hands  and  Dick  realized  that 
reciprocity  was  in  order.  Under  the  most 
favorable  circumstances,  performing  the  cere- 
mony of  introduction  was  to  Dick  an  agonizing 
ordeal,  and  the  present  situation  increased  his 
inevitable  embarrassment  a  hundred  fold.  He 
was  the  color  of  a  ripe  tomato  as  he  blurted 
out,  "Miss  Coffin,  let  me  introduce  you  to  my 
sister — Miss  Raymond — and  Miss— Miss — 
He  had  forgotten  Amy's  name  after  having 
known  it  all  his  life,  and  Peggy  came  to  the 
rescue,  and  introduced  the  others. 


220  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Whatever  Dick's  feeling  in  regard  to  the 
meeting,  it  was  clear  that  Miss  Coffin  was  not 
displeased.  She  fixed  a  hypnotic  gaze  on  Bob 
Carey  as  she  exclaimed,  '  *  Fierce  name,  isn  't  it ! 
But  take  it  from  me,  I  'm  no  dead  one,  Coffin  or 
no  coffin. ' ' 

Peggy's  smile  gave  no  hint  of  her  inward 
anguish.  "We're  just  going  home  to  have 
some  oysters.  Won't  you  and  Dick  come 
along,  Miss  Coffin?" 

Graham  had  difficulty  in  choking  down  an 
impatient  exclamation.  What  was  Peggy 
thinking  of?  It  was  bad  enough  for  Dick  to  be 
associating  with  a  girl  of  this  sort,  but  for 
Peggy  to  encourage  him  in  his  folly  by 
welcoming  the  girl  to  her  home,  the  first  time 
she  had  ever  seen  her,  impressively  illustrated 
the  feminine  incapacity  to  act  reasonably  in  a 
crisis.  While  it  was  impossible  to  put  his  dis- 
approval into  words,  Graham's  manner  left 
little  unexpressed. 

Dick  looked  as  if  he  agreed  with  Graham,  but 
Peggy  had  not  addressed  herself  to  him.  And 
as  for  Miss  Coffin,  Peggy's  invitation  was  re- 
sponsible for  a  marked  increase  in  her  spright- 


THE  CURE  221 

liness.     "Eats!"  she  cried  dramatically,  "Oh, 
boy!    Lead  me  to  it!" 

They  went  down  the  street  in  the  direction  of 
Friendly  Terrace,  Miss  Coffin  chattering 
animatedly  at  Dick's  elbow,  and  speaking 
loudly  enough  to  be  heard  easily  by  the  others. 
Indeed,  there  was  ground  for  supposing  that 
she  was  willing  to  allow  her  vivacious  conversa- 
tion to  make  an  impression  on  more  important 
listeners  than  Dick.  Her  youthful  escort, 
stalking  awkwardly  at  her  side,  was  almost  as 
silent  as  Graham  who  walked  on  ahead  with 
Peggy.  But  the  silence  of  her  brother  and  her 
lover,  even  though  it  implied  criticism  and  dis- 
pleasure, seemingly  failed  to  shadow  Peggy's 
spirits.  She  turned  her  head  every  now  and 
then  to  address  a  remark  to  Dick's  companion, 
and  Miss  Coffin  showed  her  appreciation  of  the 
friendly  attitude  by  the  request  that  she  "cut 
out  the  formal  stuff."  "You  kids  are  the  kind 
that  can  call  me  Mazie,"  she  chirruped,  ap- 
parently under  the  impression  that  she  was  ad- 
dressing some  one  at  a  considerable  distance. 

It  was  perhaps  as  well  for  the  success  of 
Peggy's  plan  tha-t  neither  her  father  nor  her 


222  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

mother  were  at  home.  She  ushered  her  guests 
into  the  living  room  and  insisted  on  their  laying 
aside  their  wraps.  Mazie  Coffin  Jiaving  re- 
moved her  hat,  went  straight  as  a  homing 
pigeon  to  the  mirror  over  the  mantel,  and  made 
an  unabashed  and  quite  unnecessary  use  of 
her  powder  puff. 

"You're  coming  out  to  help  me,  aren't  you, 
Amy?"  Peggy  inquired  casually.  "I  thought 
I'd  fix  little  pigs-in-blankets,  you  know. 
They're  awfully  good,  but  rather  fussy." 

"Why,  of  course  I'll  help,"  responded  Amy, 
wondering  if  Mazie,  also,  would  be  called  on  to 
render  assistance.  But  apparently  Peggy's 
acquaintance  with  Mazie  had  not  progressed  to 
that  point  of  informality.  "We'll  try  not  to 
be  any  longer  than  we  can  help,"  she  smiled, 
"and  we'll  leave  you  to  amuse  one  another  till 
were  ready." 

Out  in  .the  kitchen  as  they  wrapped  fat 
oysters  in  blankets  of  bacon,  pinning  the  latter 
in  place  with  wooden  tooth-picks,  the  two  girls 
exchanged  significant  glances.  "What's  the 
idea!"  Amy  asked,  with  the  frankness  of 
long  friendship. 


THE  CURE  223 

"Well,  I'm  not  sure  that  it  will  do  any  good. 
But  I've  got  an  idea—  Don't  you  know  that 
the  impression  a  thing  makes  on  you  depends  a 
lot  on  the  background!" 

"Hm!  I  don't  quite  understand  what  you 
mean." 

"Well,  if  you  see  a  girl  on  the  stage  with  a 
skirt  nine  inches  long,  it  doesn't  make  the  same 
impression  on  you  that  it  would  if  you  saw  her 
in  your  own  home." 

"No,  it  doesn't." 

"Dick's  been  used  to  nice  people  all  his  life," 
Peggy  went  on,  plainly  trying  to  encourage 
herself  as  well  as  to  explain  matters  to  Amy. 
"A  girl  like  this  might  attract  his  attention  if 
he  saw  her  behind  the  counter  of  a  cigar 
store — " 

"Does  she  work  in  a  cigar  store?" 

"I  haven't  the  least  idea.  I  only  meant  she 
wouldn't  seem  particularly  out  of  place  in  a 
tobacco  shop.  But  here  in  our  home—  Oh,  it 
seems  as  though  Dick  must  see  how  cheap  and 
tawdry  she  is." 

Amy  skewered  a  particularly  juicy  oyster 
with  a  vicious  thrust  of  the  tooth  pick.  "Hope 


224  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

so,  anyway,"  she  said,  and  felt  an  exasperated 
desire  to  box  Dick's  ears. 

But  when  Peggy  had  left  the  field  to  Mazie 
Coffin,  she  had  builded  better  than  she  knew, 
Mazie  had  accepted  the  responsibility  of  enter- 
taining the  masculine  portion  of  the  company 
with  extreme  complacency.  Never  for  a 
moment  had  she  doubted  her  ability  to  make 
a  favorable  impression.  As  she  gave  her 
smiling  attention  to  the  trio,  her  late  escort  oc- 
cupied a  very  small  fraction  of  her  thoughts. 
Dick  was  only  a  boy,  a  boy  to  whom  shaving 
was  still  a  novel  art,  and  whose  voice  cracked 
ludicrously  in  moments  of  excitement.  But 
Graham  and  Bob  were  young  men,  and  good 
looking  young  men  at  that.  Mazie  hoped  that 
the  girls  would  not  hurry  with  the  oysters. 

As  this  young  woman's  methods  were  not 
characterized  by  subtlety,  it  was  not  long  be- 
fore Dick  realized  that  he  was  being  disre- 
garded. Mazie  had  eyes  only  for  his  seniors. 
She  had  begun  by  saying,  as  the  door  closed 
behind  Peggy  and  Amy,  "Gee,  but  they're 
trusting!  How  do  they  know  that  I  won't 
vamp  you  two  guys!"  And  when  Dick,  re- 


THE  CURE  225 


seating  his  new  role  of  unnoticed  on-looker,  had 
attempted  to  bear  his  part  in  the  conversation, 
Mazie  had  silenced  him  with  a  jocose,  "What 
are  you  butting  in  for,  kid?  Children  must  be 
seen  and  not  heard,  you  know/' 

Dick  Raymond  was  by  no  means  a  bad  boy, 
and  he  was  just  as  far  from  being  a  stupid  boy. 
Mazie 's  conversational  advances,  as  she  had 
weighed  out  peanut  brittle  and  caramels  in 
quarter  pound  lots,  had  flattered  his  vanity. 
Dick  was  not  accustomed  to  being  regarded  as 
a  young  man,  and  Mazie 's  manner  of  consider- 
ing him  worth-while  game  had  naturally  con- 
vinced him  that  she  was  a  girl  of  exceptional  in- 
sight. But  now  as  she  made  eyes  at  Graham 
and  smiled  at  Bob,  the  conviction  seized  Dick 
that  her  previous  attentions  had  been  due  to 
the  fact  that  he  was  the  only  one  of  his  kind 
within  reach.  As  was  natural,  the  discovery 
made  him  critical.  He  noticed  the  harshness 
of  Mazie 's  voice,  the  vacuity  of  her  giggle. 
Her  repetition  of  cheap  slang  began  to  jar  on 
him,  even  though  he  was  himself  a  similar 
offender.  He  looked  distrustfully  at  the  crim- 
son cheeks,  with  the  powdered  nose  gleaming 


226  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

whitely  between.  '  *  I  '11  be  'jiggered  if  it  doesn  't 
look  exactly  like  a  marshmallow, ' '  he  told  him- 
self. 

The  possibility  that  Dick's  mood  was  critical 
did  not  trouble  Mazie.  She  had  looked  Peggy 
and  Amy  over  with  the  complacent  certainty  of 
her  superior  charms.  Dick 's  sister  wasn  't  a  bad 
looker,  Mazie  owned  condescendingly,  but  she 
was  slow,  dead  slow,  and  nowadays  the  fellows 
liked  plenty  of  pep.  Mazie  prided  herself,  not 
without  reason,  on  having  an  abundance  of  that 
essential  quality.  She  was  sorry  when  the  fra- 
grance of  frying  bacon  and  coffee  greeted  her 
nostrils.  Though  Graham  was  stiffly  polite  and 
Bob  Carey  plainly  amused,  she  would  have  been 
glad  of  a  little  more  time. 

The  impromptu  supper  in  the  dining-room 
completed  Dick's  disillusionment.  Determined 
not  to  yield  any  advantage  she  had  gained 
Mazie  continued  to  take  the  lead  in  the  conver- 
sation. She  gestured  freely  and  frequently 
with  the  hand  which  held  her  fork,  even  with  an 
oyster  impaled  on  the  tines.  She  drank  her  cof- 
fee noisily.  Once,  Dick  was  sure,  he  saw  Bob 
choke  down  a  laugh,  though  he  made  a  pretence 


THE  CURE  227 


of  coughing  behind  his  napkin.  And  it  was  not, 
Dick  was  certain,  because  he  found  her  amus- 
ing, but  because  he  thought  her  ridiculous. 
Dick  glared  furiously  at  the  averted  shoulder 
of  his  erst-while  charmer.  Mazie  had  elected 
to  treat  him  like  a  little  boy,  but  if  she  had  lis- 
tened to  him,  thought  Dick,  he  could  have  kept 
her  from  making  a  fool  of  herself. 

Mazie  seemed  willing  to  linger,  even  after 
Amy  and  Bob  had  taken  their  departure. 
" Guess  we  might  as  well  be  starting,"  sug- 
gested Dick,  his  thoughts  upon  the  probable  re- 
turn of  his  father  and  mother,  rather  than  on 
his  responsibility  as  host. 

"Getting  sleepy  aren't  you,  little  boy?" 
mocked  Mazie.  "Don't  let  me  keep  you  from 
your  downy.  I  can  get  home  somehow,"  and 
she  glanced  significantly  at  Graham,  whose  good 
looks,  for  all  his  air  of  reserve,  had  made  a 
strong  impression  on  her  susceptible  tempera- 
ment. 

When  at  length  she  left  under  the  escort  of 
a  frankly  sulky  Dick,  she  turned  back  to  remind 
Graham  that  he  could  always  find  her  in 
Streeter's  Sweet  Shop  between  the  hours  of 


228  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

nine  and  five.  And  then  she  took  Dick's  arm, 
and  went  out  the  door,  smiling  back  coquettishly 
over  her  shoulder. 

Graham  hardly  waited  for  them  to  be  out  of 
hearing  before  he  exploded.  The  evening  had 
been  a  great  disappointment,  and  while  Graham 
would  have  resented  any  outside  suggestion 
that  Peggy  came  short  of  absolute  perfection, 
there  were  times  when  he  felt  himself  quite 
capable  of  pointing  out  her  errors  in  judgment. 
Peggy's  painstaking  explanation  failed  to  en- 
lighten him,  and  while  Peggy  thought  Graham 
the  most  wonderful  of  men,  in  this  instance  she 
found  him  disappointingly  slow  of  comprehen- 
sion. They  did  not  quarrel,  but  they  kept  on 
arguing  the  question  long  after  it  was  clear  that 
neither  would  be  able  to  take  the  other's 
point  of  view.  They  were  still  arguing  when 
Dick  returned. 

Dick  was  in  that  state  of  irritation  when 
scolding  somebody  seems  an  indispensable  lux- 
ury. "See  here,  Peggy,  just  because  you  see 
me  with  a  girl,  you  don't  have  to  start  right  in 
and  invite  her  to  the  house." 

"Why,  Dick,  I  thought—" 


THE  CURE  229 


"  Sometimes  a  fellow  asks  a  girl  out  just  so 
he  can  size  her  up.  And  if  he  finds  that  she's 
a  blamed  idiot,  he  don't  want  her  mixed  up 
with  his  family.  You  mean  all  right,  Peggy, 
but  you  don't  understand  life  the  way  Graham 
and  I  do.  I  don't  want  you  to  have  anything 
more  to  do  with  Mazie  Coffin,  Peggy.  She's 
not  the  sort  of  girl  for  you  to  associate  with. 
You  can  ask  Graham  about  it  if  you  don't  be- 
lieve me." 

And  as  Dick  stalked  off  to  bed,  ill  tempered 
and  aggrieved  and  abnormally  dignified,  even 
Graham  was  obliged  to  admit  that  it  looked 
like  a  cure. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

DELIVERANCE 

PRISCILLA  had  seen  Horace  only  once  since 
the  football  game,  and  then  for  a  short  and  un- 
satisfactory interview.  Immediately  after, 
Horace  had  left  town  for  one  of  those  trips 
which  so  cleverly  combined  business  and 
pleasure,  a  combination  of  which  Horace 
seemed  to  have  the  secret.  A  long  let- 
ter which  might  have  been  an  excerpt  from  the 
Journal  of  Another  Disappointed  Man  gave 
her  no  address  to  which  to  write  him,  and  the 
best  she  could  do  was  to  promise  herself  to  be 
very,  very  kind  to  Horace  on  his  return.  She 
owed  him  that  for  the  wrong  she  had  done  him. 

The  days  went  by  without  any  further  word 
from  Horace,  and  Friday  rounded  out  a  full 
week  since  she  had  last  seen  him.  Priscilla  and 
Peggy  walked  home  from  class  together  with 
that  sense  of  leisure,  Friday  afternoon  brings 
to  each  student,  no  matter  how  much  must  be 

230 


DELIVERANCE  231 


done  before  Monday  morning.  They  paused 
at  Peggy's  door  and  Peggy  urged  hospitably, 
1  'Come  on  in." 

"I  think  I'd  better  go  home  and  see  if 
mother's  there,  and  if  she  wants  anything.  We 
haven't  seen  our  maid  for  three  days." 

''Well,  we've  seen  Sally,  if  that's  any  com- 
fort," laughed  Peggy.  "But  she's  been  about 
as  much  good  as  if  she  'd  been  at  the  North  Pole. 
A  woman  she  knows  was  knocked  down  by  an 
automobile  and  taken  to  the  hospital,  and  all 
Sally  has  been  good  for  since  is  to  dramatize  the 
affair.  First  she's  the  automobile  speeding 
recklessly  on,  and  then  she's  the  poor  victim. 
You  never  saw  anything  so  realistic  as  the  way 
she  drops  on  the  kitchen  floor." 

Priscilla  laughed,  but  disapprovingly.  "I 
don't  see  how  you  folks  put  up  with  her,  Peggy. 
She'd  drive  me  crazy." 

"Well,  there's  no  denying  she's  a  trial  at 
times,  but  Sally  has  her  good  points.  She's 
devoted  to  us  all,  for  one  thing,  and  that  isn't 
very  common  these  days.  And  besides, '  *  added 
Peggy  simply,  "if  we  didn't  keep  her  I  don't 
know  how  the  poor  thing  would  get  along." 


232  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

The  two  girls  had  been  together  all  day  but 
they  lingered,  loath  to  separate.  "Listen, 
Peggy,"  Priscilla  exclaimed.  "Come  home 
with  me.  Like  enough  mother  will  have  an 
errand  for  me  to  do  and  then  we  can  go  to- 
gether. Don't  you  love  outdoors  when  it's  still 
and  cold  like  this?" 

"Yes,  love  it.  I'll  go  and  see  if  we  need  any- 
thing in  the  way  of  groceries,  and  I'll  join  you 
in  about  a  minute." 

Peggy  hurried  up  the  walk  and  Priscilla 
went  on  her  way.  The  evening  paper  lay  folded 
on  the  porch  of  her  home  and  she  picked  it  up 
and  tucked  it  under  her  arm  before  she  slipped 
her  key  into  the  latch.  She  found  the  kitchen 
empty  and  ran  upstairs,  calling  her  mother. 
But  only  the  echoes  answered,  and  Priscilla 
realized  that  except  for  herself  the  house  was 
empty. 

Priscilla  seated  herself  to  wait  for  Peggy, 
picking  up  the  paper  she  had  thrown  on  the 
library  table.  Her  eye  ran  mechanically  over 
the  columns.  She  turned  the  sheets,  her 
thoughts  still  busy  with  the  day's  happenings, 
and  with  vague  plans  for  the  morrow.  Then 


DELIVERANCE  233 


unexpectedly  a  familiar  face  flashed  out  at  her 
from  the  page,  set  above  head-lines  that  seemed 
fairly  to  shriek  their  news. 

YOUNG  HITCHCOCK  SURPRISES  FRIENDS 
SOCIETY  MAN  MARRIES  IN  NEW  YORK 

Priscilla,  sitting  motionless,  read  the  news 
over  several  times.  Then  her  eyes  began  mov- 
ing down  the  column.  Even  when  she  saw 
Horace's  name  written  out  in  full,  her  sense 
of  unreality  persisted.  The  reporter  had 
treated  the  matter  humorously,  following  the 
precedent  which  makes  love  and  marriage  the 
most  popular  theme  for  jests.  That  the  lady  in 
question  had  become  Mrs.  Hitchcock  just  three 
days  after  meeting  her  future  husband  fur- 
nished a  partial  excuse  for  the  levity. 

"Mr.  Hitchcock  denies  that  there  is  anything 
hasty  in  his  romantic  marriage,"  wrote  the  re- 
porter. "When  asked  if  he  considered  a  three 
days'  acquaintance  a  sufficient  prelude  to  mat- 
rimony, he  smilingly  replied  that  he  preferred 
three  thousand  years.  In  explanation  of  his 
enigmatic  remark,  Mr.  Hitchcock  gave  his  views 


234  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

on  reincarnation,  while  in  the  background  Mrs. 
Hitchcock  blushed  assent.  Both  are  convinced 
that,  to  quote  Mr.  Hitchcock,  'they  were  soul 
mates  when  the  pyramids  were  in  building, 
lovers  in  Babylon — '  " 

Priscilla  suddenly  crumpled  the  paper  in  her 
hand.  The  familiar  phrases  were  like  a  dash 
of  cold  water,  rousing  her  from  her  daze.  "I'm 
free,"  she  cried,  "I'm  free!  I'm  free!"  and 
broke  into  violent  weeping. 

Peggy  rang  several  times  without  attracting 
attention.  When  at  length  she  put  her  finger 
to  the  button  and  held  it  there,  Priscilla  woke 
to  the  realization  that  there  was  some  one  at 
the  door.  She  crept  downstairs,  unconsciously 
holding  fast  to  the  paper  that  had  announced 
her  release,  and  admitted  a  justly  incensed 
Peggy. 

"I'm  afraid  you  need  some  of  those  artificial 
ear-drums,  Priscilla—  Why,  what's  hap- 
pened?" Peggy's  attempted  irony  changed  to 
affectionate  concern,  as  she  saw  Priscilla  with 
her  tear-streaked  cheeks  and  eyes  inflamed  and 
swollen.  She  threw  her  arms  around  her 
friend,  her  imagination  running  the  gamut  of 


DELIVERANCE  235 


possible  calamities.  "Oh,  what  is  the  matter!" 
she  pleaded. 

It  seemed  to  Priscilla  that  a  verbal  explana- 
tion was  beyond  her.  Dumbly  she  held  out  the 
crumpled  sheet.  Pe'ggy  caught  sight  of 
Horace's  smug  smile,  snatched  the  paper  from 
Priscilla 's  hand,  and  read  the  incredible  story 
at  a  glance.  The  blood  rushed  to  her  brain, 
dying  even  her  ears  crimson.  Rage  shook  her. 
For  the  instant,  the  gentle  Peggy  was  a  silent 
fury. 

Priscilla  roused  herself  to  the  need  of  ex- 
planation. '  *  Peggy ! ' ' 

Peggy  whirled  upon  her.  "My  dear,  it  is 
the  most  abominable  thing  I  ever  heard  of,  but 
you  couldn't  have  cared  for  him,  Priscilla.  Oh, 
tell  me  you  didn't." 

"We — well,  we  were  engaged." 

"Engaged,"  choked  Peggy.  She  took  a  back- 
ward step,  looked  at  Priscilla 's  disfigured  face, 
and  dug  her  nails  deep  into  her  palms.  "Oh, 
I  wish  I  were  a  man,"  she  breathed  in  a  voice 
hardly  recognizable. 

Priscilla  uttered  a  choked  laugh.  Combined 
with  the  fact  that  the  tears  were  still  running 


236  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

down  her  face,  this  did  not  tend  to  allay  Peggy 's 
apprehensions.  But  as  the  laugh  seemed  to 
unlock  Priscilla's  tongue,  her  distressed 
friend  was  not  long  kept  in  suspense. 

"I  suppose  I  looked  as  if  I  were  heart- 
broken," exclaimed  Priscilla,  laughing  and 
crying.  "Yes,  we  were  really  engaged,  Peggy, 
but  you  can't  imagine  what  a  nightmare  it  has 
been." 

"A  nightmare,"  gasped  Peggy.  "Your  en- 
gagement a  nightmare!"  She  put  her  hands 
to  her  head  as  if  the  unexpected  information 
acquired  in  the  last  few  minutes  had  crowded 
it  to  the  bursting  point. 

"Wait,  Peggy!  I've  had  a  dreadful  time, 
but  it's  been  my  own  fault.  I  blame  myself  for 
everything  that  has  happened.  If  it  hadn't 
been  for  my  silly  vanity — " 

"Vanity—"  interrupted  Peggy,  and  sniffed 
her  scorn. 

"Oh,  you  can  sneer,  Peggy  Raymond,  but 
I've  been  a  silly  little  fool.  In  the  first  place,  I 
made  myself  miserable  because  nobody  wanted 
me." 

"Priscilla,"  Peggy  interrupted  again,  "Ibe- 


DELIVERANCE  237 


lieve  you  ought  to  go  to  bed.  You're  talking 
as  if  you  were  delirious." 

"I  know  perfectly  well  what  Pm  saying, 
Peggy.  You  were  engaged  to  Graham,  and 
Nelson  was  in  love  with  Ruth  and  Bob  Carey 
was  getting  very  attentive  to  Amy,  and  I  was 
the  only  one  left  out  and  I  resented  it." 

"Do  you  mean,"  cried  Peggy  incredulously, 
that  you  don't  know  that  you're  so  handsome 
that  people  are  always  turning  to  look  after 
you  when  you  pass?" 

Priscilla  laughed.  "I  won't  choke  you  off, 
Peggy.  After  that  news — "  she  nodded  sig- 
nificantly toward  the  paper.  "I  fancy  I  can 
stand  a  little  flattery  and  not  be  injured.  But 
anyway  I  was  sour  and  sore  when  Horace  began 
to  call.  I  knew  exactly  what  Horace  was, 
Peggy,  but  I  shut  my  eyes  to  it.  I  wouldn't 
criticize  him  even  in  my  thoughts.  I  wouldn't 
let  you  laugh  at  him — ' 

"Don't  I  know  it!"  Peggy  drew  a  long 
breath.  ' '  That  was  one  of  the  things  that  made 
me  anxious." 

"Well,  when  he  told  me— that  he  cared  for 
me,  I  just  snatched  at  him,  Peggy.  I  was  per- 


238  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

fectly  delighted  that  somebody  thought  I  was 
attractive.  And  I  was  such  a  silly  little  fool 
that  I  actually  gloated  over  being  the  second 
girl  out  of  us  four  to  to  get  engaged.  Peggy, 
I'm  terribly  ashamed  to  tell  you  all  this,  but 
now's  the  time  to  finish  up  the  subject  and  be 
done  with  it. ' ' 

"Priscilla  darling,  I  can  understand  every- 
thing except  your  feeling  that  way  about  your- 
self." 

4 'Of  course  I  wasn't  happy,"  Priscilla  went 
on.  "I  don't  know  whether  Horace  was  or  not. 
He  always  talked  in  a  dreadfully  pessimistic 
fashion,  but  I  rather  think — " 

"Just  a  pose,"  interpolated  Peggy  wither- 
ingly.  "Even  when  he  was  a  little  boy,  Horace 
was  always  playing  a  part." 

"Once  or  twice  I  tried  to  tell  him  I  thought 
we  had  made  a  mistake.  When  I  thought  of 
going  on  and  on  through  the  years  it  didn't 
seem  as  if  I  could  bear  it.  And  then  he  talked 
so  dreadfully,  Peggy,  and  I  was  afraid  he'd  kill 
himself." 

"No  such  luck,"  snorted  Priscilla 's  audience. 
It  was  hard  to  believe  that  it  was  really  Peggy 


DELIVERANCE  239 


making  such  a  speech  and  looking  so  fierce  and 
angry.  Priscilla  interrupted  her  story  by  a 
little  hysterical  laugh. 

"The  last  time  was  only  two  weeks  ago  at 
the  foot-ball  game.  He  was  so  disagreeable 
that  I  tried  again  to  get  out  of  it,  and  then  he 
took  it  so  to  heart  that  I  gave  up  all  hope  of 
ever  being  free.  "When  I  read  that  account 
today,  and  it  came  over  me  all  at  once  that 
I  needn't  ever  see  Horace  Hitchcock  again,  it 
seemed  as  if  I'd  die  of  joy.  I  believe  I  should 
have,  too,  if  I  hadn't  begun  to  cry." 

Peggy  was  still  scornful.  "The  idea  of  your 
sacrificing  yourself  for  such  a  fellow  as 
Horace." 

"Only  because  I  was  to  blame,  Peggy.  As 
long  as  my  silly  vanity  had  got  me  into  such  a 
scrape,  I  thought  nothing  was  too  bad  for  me." 

"Didn't  it  ever  occur  to  you  that  two  wrongs 
didn't  make  a  right?  If  you  were  wrong  in 
getting  engaged  to  Horace  when  you  didn't  love 
him,  marrying  him  without  love  would  be  a 
million  times  wickeder." 

Priscilla  took  the  reproof  meekly.  ' '  Perhaps 
so.  Anyway,  I  have  learned  my  lesson.  The 


240  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

wrong  man  is  so  much  worse  than  no  man  at  all 
that  now  I'm  perfectly  resigned  to  being  an 
old  maid." 

Peggy  sniffed  derisively.  "You  talk  about 
your  silly  vanity.  You  certainly  were  silly 
enough,  but  when  it  comes  to  vanity,  why,  Pris- 
cilla  Combs,  you're  the  most  painfully  modest 
girl  I  know.  The  timid  violet  is  a  monster  of 
arrogance  compared  to  you.  I  adore  Ruth  and 
Amy,  as  everybody  knows,  but  when  it  comes 
to  looks,  they  're  simply  not  in  it  alongside  you. 
You're  handsome,  Priscilla,  just  as  Horace's 
dreadful  old  aunt  said,  and  you're  talented  and 
you're  charming,  and  lots  of  men  would  fall  in 
love  with  you  in  a  minute  if  they  thought  they 
had  the  ghost  of  a  chance." 

Priscilla  clapped  her  hands  over  her  ears 
and  blushed  till  Peggy's  eloquence  lost  itself 
in  laughter.  "I'm  not  going  to  be  punished  by 
having  to  marry  Horace,"  she  said,  when  at 
length  she  judged  it  safe  to  lower  her  defenses. 
"But  I  shan't  get  off  scott-free.  Just  think, 
Peggy>  now  many  people  in  this  city  will  be 
sorry  for  me,  because  I've  been  jilted  by 
Horace  Hitchcock." 


CHAPTER  XVII 

PEGGY  COMES  TO  A  DECISION 

IT  was  mid-afternoon  on  a  crisp  February 
day  when  Graham  called  Peggy  on  the  phone. 
In  his  preliminary  "Hello"  she  detected  an 
unwonted  note  of  excitement. 

"Hello,  Graham.    Yes,  it's  Peggy." 

"I  want  you  to  take  dinner  with  me  to-night." 

"Take  dinner?  Why,  I  can't  possibly,  Gra- 
ham. I've  got  quite  a  lot  of  cramming  to  do 
for  the  mid-year  examinations.  And  I  haven't 
even  looked  at  my  lessons  for  to-morrow." 

"Hang  your  lessons." 

Peggy  pricked  up  her  ears.  "What  did  you 
say  ? ' '  she  queried  incredulously. 

"I  said,  'Hang  your  lessons,'  and  I'll  add, 
'Hang  your  examinations.'  I've  got  to  see 
you  and  have  a  long  talk." 

One  of  the  advantages  of  habitual  faithful- 
ness to  duty  is  that  the  rare  relapse  into  irre- 
sponsibility comes  as  a  delightful  holiday. 

241 


242  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Peggy's  face  suddenly  crinkled  into  a  charm- 
ing smile.  It  was  a  pity  Graham  could  not 
see  it. 

"Oh,  well,"  she  said  demurely,  "if  it's  ter- 
ribly important — " 

"It  is." 

"Then  I  suppose  I  must  let  you  have  your 
way. ' ' 

"I'll  call  for  you  at  half  past  six  and  we'll 
dine  at  the  McLaughlin." 

"The  McLaughlin!  You  haven't  happened 
to  come  into  a  fortune  since  last  evening,  have 
you!" 

"Not  exactly.    It's  a  celebration." 

"What  for?" 

1  *  That 's  telling.  See  you  at  six- thirty,  Peggy 
darling.  Good-by."  And  Graham  rang  off 
in  a  hurry,  as  if  he  feared  her  powers  of 
persuasion,  and  suspected  that  if  he  gave  her 
half  a  chance  she  would  have  the  whole  story 
out  of  him  over  the  wire. 

Peggy  went  back  to  her  books  with  a  smile 
which  proved  her  thinking  of  something  very 
different  from  history  or  economics.  She  was 
well  aware  that  she  would  go  to  the  class  next 


PEGGY  COMES  TO  A  DECISION        243 

day  without  her  usual  careful  preparation,  but 
having  made  up  her  mind  to  accede  to  Graham's 
request,  she  had  no  intention  of  spoiling  her 
pleasure  by  thinking  of  slighted  tasks.  And 
though  she  made  a  valiant  effort  at  concentra- 
tion in  the  short  time  left  her  for  study,  her 
attempt  was  not  particularly  successful.  The 
dinner  was  a  celebration,  Graham  had  said. 
She  racked  her  brain  to  recall  some  anniversary 
that  had  momentarily  escaped  her  recollection, 
but  without  results. 

Peggy  was  dressed  by  six  o'clock,  having 
spent  an  unprecedentedly  long  time  over  her 
toilet.  The  McLaughlin,  though  not  the  largest 
hotel  in  the  city,  was  one  of  the  most  exclu- 
sive, and  the  costumes  seen  in  the  dining-room 
were  frequently  of  an  elegance  compared  with 
which  Peggy's  little  evening  frock  was  almost 
dowdy.  But  neither  at  the  McLaughlin  nor 
elsewhere  was  one  likely  to  see  a  face  more 
charming  than  that  which  looked  back  at  Peggy 
from  her  mirror,  so  that  her  haunting  fear  that 
Graham  might  be  ashamed  of  her  was  entirely 
unfounded. 

Mrs.  Raymond  left  the  dining  table  to  see 


244  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

the  young  couple  off.  "Have  a  good  time, 
dears,"  she  said,  and  was  pleased  but  not  sur- 
prised when  Graham  followed  Peggy's  ex- 
ample, and  stooping  kissed  her.  She  stood 
at  the  window  looking  after  them  as  they  went 
down  the  street.  What  a  dear  boy  Graham 
was!  In  the  far-off,  nebulous  future  when 
Peggy  began  to  think  of  being  married,  she 
could  trust  her  to  Graham  without  a  fear.  And 
then  they  would  live  near,  where  she  could  see 
Peggy  every  day.  Mrs.  Eaymond  told  herself 
she  would  not  have  anything  different. 

"Mother,"  called  Mr.  Eaymond 's  voice  from 
the  dining-room,  "your  dinner's  getting  cold." 

Meanwhile  Peggy,  tilting  her  head  on  one 
side  like  an  inquisitive  canary,  was  asking 
Graham,  "What  is  it  we  are  going  to  cele- 
brate?" 

"Washington's  birthday  and  the  Fourth  of 
July,  Christmas  and  New  Year's." 

"Now,  Graham,  really  I  want  to  know." 

"I'll  tell  you  when  the  time  comes.  It's  not 
the  sort  of  thing  to  be  sprung  on  the  street." 

"Oh,  how  interesting!"  But  though  Peggy 
stopped  asking  questions,  her  curiosity  grew 


PEGGY  COMES  TO  A  DECISION        245 

prodigiously.  Silent  as  Graham  was  as  to  the 
occasion  of  this  unwonted  festivity,  she  real- 
ized that  there  was  about  him  an  atmosphere  of 
suppressed  excitement.  Sometimes,  when  his 
eyes  were  on  her,  he  seemed  to  be  looking 
through  her  at  something  big  in  the  distance. 
Peggy  was  at  the  age  when  thrills  and  mys- 
teries are  always  welcome.  She  climbed  aboard 
the  street-car  all  a-tingle  with  pleasurable  ex- 
citement. 

The  dining-room  at  the  McLaughlin  im- 
pressed Peggy  with  its  grandeur.  The  hour  was 
still  early  for  fashionable  diners,  and  less  than 
half  of  the  tables  were  occupied.  But  the  rows 
of  waiters  in  black  clothes  and  gleaming  shirt 
fronts,  and  the  scrape  of  violins  in  the  back- 
ground, gave  Peggy  an  uneasy  sense  of  being 
out  of  place.  But  Graham,  convinced  that  he 
was  escorting  the  queen  rose  of  the  rose-bud 
garden  of  girls,  walked  to  his  place  as  sure  of 
himself  as  a  young  prince.  And  what  he  saw 
in  Peggy's  eyes  was  not  of  a  sort  to  lessen  his 
self-confidence. 

Peggy  soon  perceived  that  her  customary 
little  hints  regarding  economy  were  to  have 


246  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

no  weight  on  this  particular  occasion.  Graham 
began  with  oysters  and  then  appealed  to  Peggy 
as  to  her  choice  in  soups.  And  perceiving  that 
he  was  determined  to  be  extravagant,  for  all 
she  could  say  or  do,  Peggy  gave  herself  up  to 
enjoying  the  fruits  of  his  extravagance.  This 
was  clearly  Graham's  night.  Peggy  decided 
not  to  ask  again  about  his  secret  till  he  told 
her  of  his  own  accord. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  Graham  seemed  in  no 
hurry  to  take  her  into  his  confidence.  The  meal 
went  on  through  its  leisurely  courses,  the  tables 
about  them  gradually  filling,  till  the  attentive 
waiter  set  their  dessert  before  them — French 
pastries  with  small  cups  of  deliciously  fragrant 
coffee.  Peggy  tasted  and  sipped  and  smiled, 
and  looked  across  the  table  with  such  an  air 
of  radiant  happiness  that  if  Graham  had  kept 
the  smallest  fragment  of  a  heart  in  his  pos- 
session, he  would  have  been  forced  to  surrender 
it  on  the  spot. 

He  laid  down  his  fork  and  leaned  toward  her. 
" Peggy,  I've  got  my  promotion." 

" Oh,  Graham!" 

''They  want  me  to  go  to  South  America  for 


PEGGY    LOOKED    AT    HIM    WITHOUT    REPLYING 


PEGGY  COMES  TO  A  DECISION        247 

two  years,"  Graham  continued,  speaking  with 
curious  breathlessness.  "They're  not  asking 
me  to  stay  permanently,  you  understand.  But 
they  want  a  man  here  who's  thoroughly 
familiar  with  conditions  down  there." 

Pegggy  looked  at  him  without  replying,  all 
the  radiant  happiness  drained  from  her  face. 
South  America!  Her  sensations  were  almost 
the  same  as  when  he  went  to  France,  except  that 
now  she  had  no  patriotic  ardor  to  sustain  her. 
He  was  to  be  away  two  years,  and  yet  his  mood 
was  exultant,  and  he  seemed  to  expect  her  con- 
gratulations. 

Peggy  rallied  her  courage  and  lifted  her  eyes 
with  a  wan  little  smile.  '  *  When — when  do  they 
want  you  to  go?"  Her  fork  clattered  against 
her  plate,  and  she  laid  it  down.  She  conceived 
on  the  instant  an  intense  loathing  for  French 
pastry. 

"In  July." 

"Oh!"  Peggy  winked  hard.  It  would  be  a 
shame  to  spoil  that  beautiful  dinner  by  crying. 
And  besides,  it  was  a  long  time  before  Graham 
would  have  to  go,  from  February  to  July. 
Then  a  dreadful  thought  wrung  her  heart.  If 


248  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

six   months   was   a   long  time,   what   of   two 
years  ? 

Graham's  face  seemed  to  waver  as  he  leaned 
toward  her  across  the  little  round  table.  His 
voice  sounded  far-off  and  unfamiliar.  "What 
do  you  say,  Peggy  ?  Shall  we  go  ?  " 

"I — I — what  are  you  talking  about  Graham?" 

"You're  always  saying  how  you'd  love  to 
travel.  Don't  you  see  this  is  your  chance." 

"Do  you — do  you  mean — " 

"Yes,  of  course  I  do.  Won't  you  marry  me, 
Peggy,  and  go  along?  I  can't  leave  you  for 
two  years.  I  can't.  When  I  came  back  from 
the  other  side  I  promised  myself  I'd  never  be 
separated  from  you  again  by  anything  less  than 
a  world  war.  If  I  went  by  myself,  Peggy,  it 
would  be  going  into  exile  for  two  years.  But 
with  you  along,  it  would  be  a  two-years '  honey- 
moon. Think  what  it  would  be  to  see  those  new 
countries  together. ' ' 

"I  suppose  it  would  be  a  good  thing  for  our 
Spanish,"  said  Peggy,  and  the  inane  remark 
set  them  both  to  laughing,  which  undoubtedly 
was  a  good  thing.  When  the  paroxysm  was 
over,  Peggy  wiped  her  eyes  and  struggled  to  be 


PEGGY  COMES  TO  A  DECISION        249 

reasonable.  "But,  Graham,  I  don't  graduate 
till  the  twelfth  of  June." 

"And  I  don't  sail  till  the  sixth  of  July. 
Loads  of  time." 

"But  I  always  meant  to  earn  my  living  for 
a  few  years  after  I  graduated,  before — " 

"I  wouldn't  have  stood  for  that,  Peggy,  not 
if  I  was  making  enough  to  take  care  of  you, 
and  I  shall  be." 

Peggy  was  breathing  fast.  It  was  hard  to 
realize  that  she  and  Graham  were  sitting  there 
in  the  McLaughlin  dining-room,  discussing  the 
question  of  whether  or  not  they  should  be 
married  in  July.  For  except  on  one  memorable 
occasion,  when  Graham  had  been  on  the  point 
of  going  across  and  Peggy  had  been  ready  to 
marry  him  at  a  moment's  notice,  she  had  felt 
about  her  marriage  much  as  her  mother  did,  as 
if  it  belonged  to  the  misty,  distant,  indeterm- 
inate future.  And  now  the  six  months  she  had 
assured  herself  was  a  long  time  had  dwindled 
down  almost  to  nothing.  July!  It  was  in- 
credibly, overwhelmingly  near. 

"We'll  have  to  see  what  father  and  mother 
think. ' '  She  tried  to  make  her  voice  matter-of - 


250  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

fact,  but  it  had  an  unnatural  tension.  Graham 
on  the  other  side  of  the  little  table,  nodded 
agreement. 

"Of  course  we'll  see  what  they  think.  But 
we  know  they  can  say  only  one  thing.  It's 
such  a  reasonable  solution  that  only  one  opinion 
is  possible.  Don't  you  like  your  dessert, 
Peggy?  Won't  you  have  some  ice-cream?" 

Peggy  protested  she  liked  her  desert,  and 
finished  it  without  tasting  a  morsel.  Then  they 
went  home  and  proceeded  to  bomb  the  peaceful 
Raymond  household  with  Graham's  astound- 
ing proposition.  And  while  Mrs.  Raymond 
began  by  pronouncing  it  out  of  the  question,  be- 
fore the  evening  ended  she  was  driven  to  admit 
the  reasonableness  of  Graham's  plan.  It  was 
true  that  Peggy's  marriage  would  follow  rather 
closely  on  the  heels  of  her  graduation,  but 
thanks  to  common-sense  hours  of  sleep,  and  an 
abundance  of  outdoor  exercise,  she  had  come 
through  her  four  years^  college  course  in 
radiant  health.  A  separation  of  two  years  just 
now  would  be  hard  for  both,  and  especially  for 
Graham.  Indeed  Graham  frankly  declared 
that  he  would  not  go  without  Peggy,  and  yet 


PEGGY  COMES  TO  A  DECISION         251 

to  refuse  such  a  chance  was  to  prejudice  his 
future  success. 

When  Peggy  went  to  bed  that  night  she  knew 
the  whole  thing  was  settled.  To  be  sure,  both 
her  father  and  mother  had  warned  her  against 
a  hasty  decision,  insisting  that  she  take  plenty 
of  time  to  think  the  matter  over.  But  Peggy 
knew  what  the  final  verdict  would  be,  and  she 
was  sure  Graham  also  knew  it,  by  the  triumph 
in  his  eyes  as  he  kissed  her  good  night. 

Changes !  She  lay  in  her  little  white  bed  and 
thought  of  the  new  life  opening  before  her, 
strange  countries,  unfamiliar  tongues,  alien 
customs,  even  the  dear,  friendly  constellations 
replaced  by  unknown  stars.  And  the  queerest 
part  of  all  was  that  she  herself  would  no  longer 
be  Peggy  Raymond,  but  a  strange  young  woman, 
Margaret  Wylie  by  name.  Peggy  gave  a  little 
incredulous  laugh.  It  was  astonishing  how  the 
world  had  turned  upside  down  since  morning. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE 

THE  wedding  day  was  set  for  the  second  of 
July,  and  after  that  decision  had  been  reached, 
Peggy  professed  a  complete  loss  of  interest  in 
the  subject.  When  Graham  consulted  her  on 
details  more  or  less  important,  she  gave  him  a 
reluctant  attention. 

"I  tell  you,  Graham,  I  don't  want  to  think 
about  it.  I  never  did  enjoy  mixed  flavors.  I 
shall  have  years  and  years  of  being  Mrs. 
Graham  Wylie,  fifty  or  sixty  probably,  and 
there's  only  a  few  months  left  of  my  college 
life." 

"If  you  feel  so  keenly  on  the  subject,"  teased 
Graham,  "we'd  better  postpone  our  wedding, 
and  let  you  take  a  post-graduate  course  of  ten 
years  or  so." 

"That  won't  be  necessary.  I  know  I  shall 
love  my  wedding  clothes,  and  my  wedding  day, 
and  being  married  to  you,  and  everything.  But 

252 


A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  253 

if  I  let  myself  think  of  that,  I'll  spoil  this,  don't 
you  see?  It  would  be  like  eating  ice-cream 
with  soup." 

"I  suppose  I  shall  be  allowed  to  call  oc- 
casionally. ' ' 

"Don't  be  silly!  Of  course  I  should  be 
wretched  if  I  didn't  see  you  every  day.  But 
unless  you  have  to  settle  something  very  im- 
portant about  South  America,  don't  ask  my 
opinion.  Up  to  the  twelfth  of  June,  I'm  a 
college  senior,  first,  last  and  all  the  time." 

Peggy  was  as.  good  as  her  word.  As  far  as 
her  conversation  revealed,  she  never  looked 
beyond  Commencement  Day.  And  if  it  was  in- 
evitable that  her  thoughts  should  be  more  un- 
ruly than  her  tongue,  her  mental  excursions 
into  the  future  were  surprisingly  few.  Peggy 
had  never  been  a  girl  to  discount  to-day  in 
favor  of  to-morrow,  and  this  life-long  habit 
aided  her  in  her  determination  to  extract  the 
full  flavor  from  the  present. 

While  Peggy  had  thoroughly  enjoyed  her 
college  life,  college  associations  had  naturally 
never  meant  to  her  what  they  mean  to  a  girl 
who  leaves  home  to  complete  her  education. 


254  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Although  she  was  popular  in  her  class,  her 
closest  friends  were  the  girls  who  had  been  her 
intimates  long  before  her  high-school  days, 
even,  and  she  enjoyed  her  home  so  thoroughly 
that  it  never  occurred  to  her  to  regret  having 
missed  the  associations  of  dormitory  life.  But 
now  she  gave  herself  so  unreservedly  to  her 
college  interests  that  no  on-looker  would  have 
dreamed  tha,t  any  event  of  special  importance 
had  been  scheduled  for  early  July. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  Peggy  could  hardly  have 
done  justice  to  her  varied  duties  in  connection 
with  Commencement,  had  she  brought  to  them  a 
divided  attention.  Her  knack  at  rhyming  had 
resulted  in  her  election  as  class  poet,  and  the 
same  gift,  doubtless,  had  caused  her  to  be 
chosen  one  of  the  editorial  staff  of  the  Annual, 
gotten  out  each  spring  by  the  senior  class. 
Moreover  she  had  a  part,  though  a  small  one,  in 
the  class  play  that  was  to  be  given  out-of-doors 
and  promised  to  be  one  of  the  most  interesting 
features  of  commencement  week.  Since  even 
for  seniors  there  were  lessons  to  be  learned, 
and  examinations  to  be  passed,  it  is  no  wonder 
that  Peggy  found  herself  quite  occupied  with- 


A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  255 

out  giving  thought  to  the  great  changes  on 
ahead. 

While  she  struggled  with  her  poem,  which  she 
was  determined  as  all  class  laureates,  to  make 
a  masterpiece,  and  scribbled  off  jokes  for  the 
Annual  and  practised  for  the  play,  and  studied 
in  her  odd  minutes,  the  days  had  a  most  dis- 
concerting fashion  of  shooting  by  without  re- 
gard to  speed  regulations.  Every  Saturday 
night  awoke  in  Peggy's  mind  the  same  in- 
credulity. Another  week  was  gone — only  it 
couldn't  be,  for  it  was  no  time  at  all  since  last 
Sunday  morning.  She  had  an  unreasonable 
impulse  to  clutch  at  the  flying  hours  and  hold 
them  fast. 

But  the  last  spring  of  her  college  life  was 
not  to  be  altogether  a  season  of  flowers.  One 
afternoon  at  the  close  of  recitations,  Peggy 
hunted  up  Ruth  who  had  agreed  to  go  with  her 
for  a  call  on  Mary  Donaldson. 

"Ruth,  I'm  sorry,  but  Priscilla  and  I  are 
going  to  be  busy  until  after  dinner  time, 
probably.  It's  the  Annual  again." 

"That  old  Annual  takes  so  much  time," 
scolded  Ruth,  objecting  on  principle  to  any- 


256  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

thing  that  separated  her  from  Peggy  for  these 
few  precious  weeks.  Poor  Euth  was  trying  to 
imitate  Peggy's  example  and  not  look  ahead, 
but  there  were  times  when  the  coming  desola- 
tion settled  over  her  spirits  like  a  chilling  fog. 
With  Peggy  and  Graham  in  South  America, 
and  Nelson  in  Oklahoma,  Euth  felt  that  exist- 
ence would  be  flat  and  flavorless. 

1  'Yes,  I  know  it  takes  time."  Peggy  reso- 
lutely ignored  the  undertone  of  tragedy  in 
Euth's  voice.  "But  somebody  has  to  do  it,  and 
anyway,  it's  fun." 

It  was  due  to  her  lingering  to  cheer  the  des- 
pondent Euth  that  Peggy  was  the  last  of  the 
Annual  staff  to  reach  the  class  room,  which  for 
that  particular  evening  had  been  promoted  to 
the  dignity  of  an  editorial  sanctum.  Peggy 
made  her  entry  on  a  somewhat  hilarious  scene. 
Everybody  was  laughing,  or  so  Peggy  thought. 
Had  she  been  more  observant  she  would  have 
noticed  that  Priscilla's  face  wore  no  smile,  but 
a  look  of  anxiety,  bordering  on  distress. 

"What's  the  joke?"  inquired  Peggy,  as  she 
took  her  seat.  Though  the  gathering  was  made 
up  of  college  seniors  and  was  therefore  a  digni- 


A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  257 

fied,  deliberative  assembly,  its  proceedings  were 
sometimes  as  informal  as  if  they  had  been 
merely  a  group  of  high-school  girls. 

By  way  of  answer,  a  sheet  of  card-board  that 
evidently  had  made  the  rounds  was  put  in  her 
hand.  Peggy  looked  at  it  curiously.  At  the 
top,  under  the  heading,  "The  Misfit,"  was  a 
clever  caricature  representing  a  small  man  at- 
tired in  garments  much  too  large  for  him.  His 
broad-brimmed  hat  came  down  over  his  ears, 
his  overcoat  trailed  on  the  ground,  while  the 
umbrella  he  carried  was  more  than  double  his 
height.  But  the  artist  had  avoided  giving  the 
impression  that  he  was  a  masquerading  child  by 
bringing  into  prominence  a  somewhat  scraggly 
mustache. 

Peggy  smiled  appreciatively  at  the  undoubted 
humor  of  the  drawing  and  gave  her  attention 
to  the  verses  below.  But  though  they  showed 
quite  as  much  ability  as  the  illustration,  the 
effect  of  reading  them  was  to  erase  the  smile 
from  her  lips,  leaving  her  gravely  attentive. 
The  laughter  had  quieted.  She  was  aware  that 
the  girls  were  all  watching  her,  and  though  she 
did  not  raise  her  eyes,  she  knew  instinctively 


258  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

that  Priscilla's  face  wore  a  look  of  apprehen- 
sion. 

The  previous  spring,  one  of  the  most  popular 
men  in  the  English  department  had  resigned  to 
devote  himself  to  literary  work,  and  his  place 
had  been  nominally  filled  by  a  young  man  with 
good  credentials  but  no  experience.  He  had 
proved  a  great  disappointment,  for  whatever 
his  attainments,  he  lacked  the  ability  to  impart ; 
while  in  contrast  to  the  enthusiasm  which 
Professor  Baer's  lectures  had  aroused,  his 
classes  seemed  veritable  refrigerating  plants. 
Peggy  knew  that  the  seniors  who  had  taken  his 
courses  were  complaining  bitterly  that  they 
had  been  "  stung, "  and  had  congratulated  her- 
self that  her  own  work  in  English  had  been  con- 
tinued with  another  member  of  the  faculty. 

In  the  verses  before  her,  all  the  resentment 
of  the  students  toward  an  incompetent  teacher, 
following  an  able  and  popular  one,  was  ex- 
pressed with  diabolical  cleverness.  The  fact 
that  the  present  incumbent  was  named  Fox, 
and  that  he  followed  Professor  Baer,  had 
already  been  the  theme  of  innumerable  jokes, 
and  the  author  of  the  verses  had  used  it  as  the 


A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  259 

motive  of  her  lines,  so  that  there  was  no  chance 
that  even  the  outsider  would  remain  ignorant 
of  the  instructor  satirized. 

Peggy  read  the  verses  over  more  than  once 
in  order  to  gain  time.  She  was  sorely  tempted 
to  say  nothing.  Peggy  was  under  no  illusions 
regarding  the  path  of  the  reformer.  It  was 
vastly  easier,  vastly  pleasanter,  to  let  things 
go.  It  was  not  that  she  had  any  cowardly 
shrinking  from  hard  knocks,  but  now,  almost  at 
the  close  of  her  college  life,  she  was  not  in  the 
mood  to  antagonize  any  one.  She  loved  every- 
thing about  the  college,  its  gray  stone  buildings 
draped  in  ivy,  its  campus  dotted  with  stately 
trees,  the  class-rooms  and  the  laboratories,  the 
dignified  president,  the  professors  and  the  girls 
— oh,  most  of  all,  the  girls.  She  loved  to  be- 
lieve in  their  affection,  their  admiration. 
Never  in  her  life  had  popularity  meant  as  much 
to  her  as  now.  And  yet  in  spite  of  her  distaste, 
she  knew  she  had  no  choice.  She  must  dis- 
agree, antagonize,  anger. 

When  she  lifted  her  eyes,  the  room  was  very 
quiet,  almost  as  if  every  one  knew  what  she 
was  going  to  say.  "Awfully  clever,  aren't 


260  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

they  ? ' '  Peggy  spoke  very  deliberately.  '  *  What 
are  they  for?" 

A  dark-eyed  girl  across  the  room  took  it  on 
herself  to  answer,  and  as  soon  as  her  lips 
parted,  Peggy  knew  her  for  the  author. 

"I'd  intended  it  for  the  Atlantic  Monthly/' 
she  smiled  with  frank  sarcasm.  "But  I  think 
perhaps  it 's  better  suited  to  the  Annual.  What 
do  you  say  ? ' ' 

"I'm  afraid  I  don't  think  it's  at  all  suited  to 
the  Annual." 

There  was  a  little  chorus  of  protests.  "You 
never  were  in  his  classes,  Peggy,"  cried  some 
one  from  the  rear  seat.  "If  you'd  endured 
what  we  have  at  the  hands  of  that  man,  you'd 
love  every  line." 

A  burst  of  approving  laughter  showed  how 
completely  the  sympathies  of  this  group  of  girls 
were  with  the  speaker.  Half-whispered  com- 
ments were  being  exchanged.  "The  stupidest 
lectures!"  "The  greatest  waste  of  time!" 
Peggy  was  perfectly  able  to  understand  this 
point  of  view.  She  struggled  to  make  the  girls 
see  hers. 

"Of  course  that's  not  right.    If  I  had  been 


A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  261 

in  his  class  I'd  have  been  perfectly  ready  to  go 
to  President  Eaton,  and  tell  him  how  unsatis- 
factory everything  was.  But  to  take  this  way 
of  doing  it — "  she  looked  down  at  the  mocking 
lines  and  said  with  a  visible  effort,  " Don't  you 
think  it  seems  a  little  bit  cowardly — and  cruel, 
too?" 

Priscilla  came  to  her  friend 's  assistance.  '  *  If 
the  faculty  knew  about  those  verses,  I'm  sure 
we'd  never  be  allowed  to  put  them  in  the 
Annual. ' ' 

* '  How 's  the  faculty  to  know  ? ' '  demanded  the 
criticized  author,  Ida  Craig,  with  much  asperity. 

" Don't  you  think,"  suggested  Peggy  with  all 
the  diplomacy  she  could  muster,  "that  since 
they  leave  it  all  to  us,  we're  put  on  our  honor 
to  see  that  nothing  gets  in  that  they  could 
object  to?" 

Ida  smiled  disagreeably.  "After  all,"  she 
said,  "you're  not  the  editor-in-chief,  you  know." 

The  rudness  gave  Peggy  the  courage  that  she 
needed.  "No,  of  course.  I  haven't  any  more 
voice  than  any  of  the  rest  of  you.  But  if  the 
poem  goes  in,  I  shall  ask  you  to  accept  my 
resignation. ' ' 


262  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"In  other  words,"  exclaimed  Ida,  "If  you 
can't  have  your  own  way,  you'll  take  your  dolls 
and  go  home. ' ' 

"No  indeed,"  Peggy  was  trying  to  speak 
calmly,  but  her  voice  shook,  "But  if  my  name 
appears  among  the  editors  of  the  Annual,  it'll 
be  taken  for  granted  that  I  approve  of  all  that 
is  in  it.  I  'm  not  willing  to  stand  for  anything 
like  this." 

"Nor  I,"  said  Priscilla.  "I  agree  with 
Peggy." 

Ida  Craig  leaned  toward  the  girl  nearest  her. 
"Miss  Combs  is  nothing  if  not  original,"  she 
said  in  an  echoing  stage-whisper  audible  to 
every  one  in  the  room.  But  the  editor-in-chief, 
dismayed  at  the  prospect  of  losing  two  af  her 
most  reliable  aides,  hastily  interposed. 

"Now  we  mustn't  get  personal,  girls,"  she 
said.  "You  know  how  the  newspapers  are 
always  trying  to  make  out  that  the  members  of 
women's  organizations  do  nothing  but  quarrel. 
I  think  college  graduates  ought  to  disprove  that 
sort  of  thing."  She  looked  at  Peggy  rather 
appealingly.  "I  suppose  you're  willing  to 
abide  by  the  will  of  the  majority,"  she  said. 


A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  263 

"If  the  majority  vote  to  include  'The  Mis- 
fit,' "  returned  Peggy,  "Of  course  that  settles 
it."  And  then  as  the  face  of  the  editor-in- 
chief  brightened,  she  added,  "But  I  shall  have 
to  resign,  because  the  vote  of  the  majority 
can't  decide  a  question  of  right  and  wrong  for 
me." 

"Oh,"  said  the  editor-in-chief  rather  blankly, 
and  then  she  quickly  rallied.  "We'll  decide 
that  question  when  we  come  to  it,"  she  said. 
"Will  the  meeting  please  come  to  order." 

The  mooted  question  was  not  put  to  vote  till 
the  end  of  the  hour.  "All  in  favor  of  includ- 
ing 'The  Misfit'  in  the  Annual,"  said  the  edi- 
tor-in-chief, after  the  motion  had  been  duly 
made,  "please  signify  it  by  saying  'aye.' 

"Aye,"  chimecj.  two  defiant  voices,  that  of 
the  author  and  her  dearest  friend  in  the  class. 

"Those  opposed,  'No.'  " 

There  was  a  murmur  of  'noes,'  indicating 
that  Peggy  had  won  her  fight,  but  she  had  none 
of  the  elation  of  the  victor.  She  realized  that 
several  had  not  voted,  and  that  those  who  had 
espoused  her  side  had  acted  from  motives  of 
policy  rather  than  conviction.  Ida  Craig  was 


264  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

plainly  offended,  and  as  for  the  rest,  Peggy 
suspected  that  they  failed  to  make  the  fine 
distinction  between  standing  up  for  one's 
principles  and  being  determined  to  have  one's 
way. 

Those  closing  weeks  of  college  life  were  not 
all  she  had  hoped.  Peggy  fancied  a  reserve  in 
the  friendliness  of  her  friends.  She  became 
unnaturally  sensitive,  imagining  slights  where 
none  existed.  She  was  troubled  by  the  thought 
that  Priscilla  shared  in  her  partial  eclipse  of 
popularity,  and  inclined  to  regard  her  uncom- 
promising conscience  as  a  decided  inconven- 
ience, if  nothing  worse. 

But  Peggy's  stand  was  to  have  a  tragic 
justification.  Three  weeks  before  Commence- 
ment the  Annual  came  from  the  binders,  look- 
ing very  attractive  in  its  cover  of  blue  and 
white,  the  college  colors.  The  editorial  force 
had  been  called  together  to  make  the  necessary 
arrangements  for  placing  it  on  sale.  Peggy 
and  Priscilla  had  an  early  class  Wednesday 
morning,  and  as  they  entered  the  hall  on  their 
way  to  the  cloak-room,  they  encountered 
Phyllis  Eiordan,  the  Annual's  editor-in-chief. 


A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  265 

Phyllis'  greeting  was  more  than  cordial,  but 
Peggy  hardly  noticed  that,  in  her  concern  for 
the  girl  herself. 

"Why,  Phyllis, "  she  cried.  "What's  the 
matter?  You're  as  white  as  a  sheet." 

Phyllis  looked  from  one  to  the  other.  "You 
haven't  heard  about  Mrs.  Fox?" 

"What  about  her?"  The  question  came 
simultaneously  from  two  pairs  of  lips. 

"She  died  last  night." 

Peggy  and  Priscilla  uttered  a  shocked  ex- 
clamation. They  were  both  but  slightly  ac- 
quainted with  the  girlish  wife  of  the  unpopu- 
lar professor  of  English,  but  intimacy  was  not 
needed  to  point  the  tragedy  of  the  news.  Her 
voice  curiously  tense,  Phyllis  continued. 

"It  seemed  she  had  serious  heart  trouble, 
and  the  doctor  thought  she  ought  to  live  in 
a  milder  climate.  Professor  Fox  has  resigned, 
and  they  were  to  locate  in  southern  California. 
And  Oh,  Peggy  Raymond— 

She  turned  suddenly  toward  Peggy,  and 
caught  both  of  her  hands.  ' '  Since  I  heard  the 
news  last  evening,  I  haven't  been  able  to  think 
of  anything  else.  Peggy,  do  you  realize 


266  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

what  it  would  have  meant  if  we  had  let  that 
poem  of  Ida's  go  in?  We'd  have  had  to  de- 
stroy the  whole  edition  of  the  Annual.  We 
couldn't  have  done  anything  else." 

Peggy  changed  color  slightly,  but  did  not 
speak. 

"You've  saved  our  lives,"  declared  Phyllis, 
her  eyes  bright  with  tears.  "If  it  hadn't  been 
for  you,  we'd  have  been  in  the  worst  box  of 
any  class  since  the  college  was  founded.  And 
when  I  think  how  brave  you  were,  standing  out 
against  us  all — " 

"Why,  Phyllis,"  Peggy  interposed,  "I 
wasn't  brave  at  all.  This — this  dreadful  thing 
that  has  happened  doesn't  make  me  a  bit  more 
right  than  I  was  in  the  beginning.  And  I 
knew  it,  too,  and  yet  I  wasn't  satisfied.  I've 
been  ready  to  wish  I  hadn't  done  it  a  hundred 
times.  And  when  you  call  me  brave,  you  make 
me  desperately  ashamed,  for  nobody  knows  as 
well  as  I  do  what  a  coward  I  've  been. ' ' 

"If  you're  cowardly,  Peggy,"  cried  Priscilla, 
up  in  arms  at  once,  "I'm  sorry  for  the  rest  of 
us." 

"Heavens,  I  should  say  so,"  agreed  Phyl- 


A  PARTIAL  ECLIPSE  267 

lis.  And  then  as  the  signal  bell  sounded,  the 
girls  rushed  for  the  cloak  room.  Blended 
with  Peggy's  sorrow  and  her  sense  of  humil- 
ity, was  a  gratifying  certainty  that  the  last 
three  weeks  of  her  college  life  would  be  all  she 
had  dreamed. 


CHAPTER  XIX 

THE  END   OF    SCHOOL  LIFE 

THE  senior  banquet  was  the  most  intimate 
and,  in  the  opinion  of  many,  the  most  delightful 
festivity  of  Commencement.  No  guests  were 
invited.  The  only  member  of  the  faculty 
present  was  the  honorary  member  of  the  class, 
a  charming  woman,  who  taught  Greek  and 
talked  slang — as  an  antidote,  she  was  wont  to 
say.  And  because  it  was  so  strictly  a  class 
affair,  a  great  deal  of  fun  was  in  order  which 
would  have  been  impossible  before  ever  so 
limited  an  audience. 

4 'What  I  like  about  it  is  that  it's  frankly 
selfish,"  Peggy  told  Priscilla.  And  then  no- 
ticing Priscilla's  expression  of  incredulity,  "I 
don't  mean  selfish  in  the  mean  sense,  just  the 
nice,  comfortable,  homey  sort.  All  the  rest 
of  Commencement  we're  thinking  about  other 
people,  the  Board  of  Trustees,  and  the  fathers 
and  mothers,  and  the  audience  and  the  public. 

268 


THE  END  OF  SCHOOL  LIFE  269 

It's  a  comfort  that  there's  one  thing  where  we 
don't  have  to  think  of  any  one  but  ourselves, 
and  we  can  be  as  silly  as  we  please." 

The  first  class  to  graduate  had  established  a 
precedent  which  every  succeeding  class  had 
strictly  followed,  that  all  engagements  were  to 
be  announced  at  the  class  banquet,  Commence- 
ment week.  If  for  any  reason  it  was  preferred 
that  such  announcements  should  be  regarded 
as  confidential,  it  was  understood  that  the 
members  of  the  class  would  be  put  to  torture 
rather  than  reveal  a  word.  So  strictly  had  a 
few  such  items  of  news  been  guarded — in  some 
instances  for  several  years — that  the  ability  of 
a  woman  to  keep  a  secret  had  apparently  been 
satisfactorily  demonstrated  by  the  graduates 
of  Peggy's  alma  mater.  As  a  rule,  however, 
the  graduate  who  announced  her  engagement 
at  the  class  banquet  was  willing  that  all  the 
world  should  know  the  joyful  news. 

The  banquet  was  held  in  the  college 
gymnasium,  the  long  tables  being  arranged  in 
a  hollow  square.  After  the  feasting  was  over, 
the  waiters  were  dismissed  and  the  doors 
closed  to  ensure  perfect  secrecy,— after  which 


270  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

every  girl  engaged  in  the  class  was  expected  to 
take  her  stand  in  the  central  enclosure,  carrying 
with  her  a  photograph  of  her  fiance,  the  back  of 
the  said  photograph  being  duly  inscribed  with 
her  name  and  his.  And  as  if  this  were  not 
enough,  each  was  required  to  state  in  a  few  well- 
chosen  words  the  qualities  which  differentiated 
her  particular  young  man  from  all  the  rest  of 
mankind.  At  the  conclusion  of  this  unique 
ceremony,  the  photographs  were  passed  about 
and  duly  inspected,  and  then  a  vote  was  taken  to 
determine  the  handsomest.  The  gentleman  so 
honored  was  presented  with  a  stick-pin,  which 
his  betrothed  took  charge  of  until  such  time  as 
she  chose  to  deliver  it. 

As  the  girls  dispatched  their  deviled  crabs 
and  chicken  salad  and  ice  cream,  and  other  in- 
congruous and  indigestible  dainties,  the 
thoughts  of  many  turned  expectantly  toward 
the  ceremony  immediately  following  the  ban- 
quet. It  was  true  that  some  of  the  engage- 
ments were  no  secret.  Graham  Wylie,  for  in- 
stance, had  been  Peggy  Raymond's  devoted 
cavalier  ever  since  she  graduated  from  high 
school.  And  there  were  girls  in  the  dormi- 


THE  END  OF  SCHOOL  LIFE  271 

tories  who  heard  so  frequently  and  at  such 
length  from  certain  men  friends  that  they  were 
assumed  to  be  engaged  whether  they  admitted 
it  or  not.  But  on  the  other  hand  there  were 
always  surprises  enough  to  render  the  occasion 
exciting. 

The  ice  cream  was  dispatched  at  last,  along 
with  the  cakes  and  candies.  The  little  coffee 
cups  were  emptied.  The  waiters  cleared  the 
tables  and  withdrew,  closing  the  door  accord- 
ing to  instructions.  And  then  from  here  and 
there  in  the  long  rows  of  diners,  one  laughing 
girl  after  another  rose,  and  made  her  way  into 
the  vacant  spare  enclosed  by  the  tables. 

Priscilla's  eye  followed  Peggy  on  her  way, 
blushing,  laughing,  and  looking  to  Priscilla's 
fond  eyes  the  embodiment  of  girlish  loveliness. 
And  then  some  one  called  her  name.  "Why, 
Priscilla  Combs!" 

Priscilla  turned.  A  classmate  that  she  knew 
only  slightly  was  leaning  across  the  table. 
"Why  aren't  you  going  with  the  others?"  she 
cried. 

< <I?"  Priscilla  colored  to  the  roots  of  her 
hair.  "I'm  not  eligible." 


272  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"Oh,  come!"  retorted  the  other  archly. 
"This  isn't  any  time  for  prevarication,  you 
know.  You're  expected  to  tell  the  truth." 

Some  one  caught  the  speaker  by  the  arm,  and 
as  she  turned,  hissed  a  terse  statement  in  her 
ear.  Only  too  well  did  Priscilla  know  the  im- 
port of  that  whisper.  Inaudible  as  it  was,  its 
news  might  as  well  have  been  shouted.  The 
girl  who  had  innocently  assumed  Priscilla 's 
engagement  was  now  hearing  that  Horace 
Hitchcock,  after  paying  Priscilla  every  atten- 
ion,  had  met  some  one  he  liked  better  in  New 
York,  and  had  married  her  after  three  days' 
acquaintance. 

Priscilla  held  her  head  high.  She  saw  her 
vis-a-vis  change  color  and  lift  startled  eyes, 
When  she  found  Priscilla  regarding  her,  the 
girl  lost  her  head.  "Oh,  excuse  me,"  she 
gasped. 

"Why  certainly,"  laughed  Priscilla.  "I'm 
like  the  man  who  was  asked  to  change  a 
twenty-dollar  bill.  I  appreciate  the  compli- 
ment." But  for  all  her  cheerful  air,  the  thing 
rankled.  Would  they  never  be  done  pitying 
her  because  she  had  been  jilted  by  Horace 


THE  END  OF  SCHOOL  LIFE  273 

Hitchcock.  It  was  impossible  to  explain,  but 
it  really  seemed  to  Priscilla  that  some  of  them 
might  suspect  what  a  relief  the  termination  of 
that  unacknowledged  engagement  had  been. 

There  were  now  a  dozen  girls  in  the 
enclosure.  The  appearance  of  some  was 
greeted  with  loud  cries,  intended  to  convey  re- 
proach, or  incredulity.  Excited  comments  ran 
around  the  tables.  "Look,  there's  Cynthia, 
after  insisting  that  there  wasn't  a  thing 
between  them. "  "  Why,  there 's  Anne  Gordon. ' ' 
"Now  who  in  the  world — "  And  while  the 
eager  inspection  went  on,  the  twelve  girls  in 
the  middle  stood  rather  close  together  as  if 
each  found  it  a  help  in  that  trying  moment  to 
feel  she  was  not  alone. 

The  talk  and  laughter  quieted  when  the  presi- 
dent rapped  for  order.  Eloise  Hayden  was 
the  first  to  be  called  on  to  introduce  her  fiance 
to  her  attentive  classmates.  Eloise  was  one  of 
the  girls  who  affect  the  modern  pose  of  matter- 
of-factness.  She  was  so  afraid  of  undue  senti- 
mentality that  she  went  too  far  in  the  other 
direction,  like  one  who  is  so  determined  to  be 
straight  as  to  bend  backward.  As  Eloise 's 


274  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

name  was  spoken,  she  stepped  out  from  the 
group,  and  held  up  to  view  the  photograph  she 
carried. 

11  Friends  and  classmates,  I  am  introducing 
John  Mackenzie  Eowe.  As  you  see,  he  is  no 
beauty,  and  he'll  never  wear  the  stick  pin  un- 
less it's  given  for  a  consolation  prize.  But  on 
the  other  hand,  he  isn't  bad  looking  enough  so 
he  needs  to  wear  a  mask  when  he  goes  on  the 
street. ' ' 

The  momentary  silence  as  Eloise  stopped  for 
breath  was  filled  by  a  chorus  of  groans,  Eloise 's 
classmates  disapproving  her  extreme  lack  of 
sentiment.  Quite  unabashed  by  this  demon- 
stration, Eloise  continued. 

"John  and  I  live  in  the  country,  as  some  of 
you  know.  The  only  thing  between  his  father 's 
place  and  my  father's  place  is  a  privet 
hedge,  not  high  enough  to  be  a  barrier. 
We've  lived  on  the  two  sides  of  that 
hedge  since  he  was  thirteen  and  I  eleven.  I 
suppose  if  any  other  boy  had  lived  there,  I 
should  now  be  engaged  to  him.  And  if  any 
other  girl  had  lived  where  I  do,  he  would  have 
been  engaged  to  her." 


THE  END  OF  SCHOOL  LIFE  275 

The  signs  of  displeasure  redoubled.  Min- 
gled with  the  groans  were  hisses,  and  Eloise, 
who  liked  nothing  better  than  to  stir  her  friends 
to  protest  against  her  nonchalant  attitude,  con- 
tinued blithely : 

"Our  engagement  is  in  every  way  a  sensi- 
ble one.  Neither  of  us  thinks  the  other  per- 
fect, so  we  won't  have  the  usual  disillusion- 
ment and  disappointment  after  we  are  married. 
I'm  sorry  I  shan't  be  able  to  introduce  John  to 
you  to-morrow,  but  he  wrote  me  that  if  he  came 
he  would  have  to  put  off  a  business  trip,  and  I 
wrote  him,  'Business  first.' 

The  demonstrations  of  disapproval  were 
now  so  marked  that  Eloise  considered  this  a 
good  place  to  stop.  She  laid  down  the  photo- 
graph for  the  girls'  inspection  and  stepped 
back,  seemingly  very  well  satisfied  with  her 
performance. 

Judith  West,  a  plump  pink  and  white  girl, 
looking,  thanks  to  her  bobbed  hair  and  round 
face,  not  a  day  over  fifteen,  was  next  to  be 
called  on.  Judith  blushed  rosily  as  she  held 
up  the  photograph  of  a  handsome  young  man 
in  a  lieutenant's  uniform. 


276  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"This  is  Philip  Carpenter,"  she  announced 
in  a  faint,  frightened  voice.  "And  all  I  can 
say  is  that  he's  as  good  as  he  looks." 

"He  looks  good  enough  to  eat,"  encouraged 
an  admiring  voice  from  a  side-table. 

"He  is,"  declared  Judith.  "At  least — well, 
you  know  what  I  mean.  He's  just  as  nice  as 
he  can  be,  and  after  I'd  seen  him  once,  nobody 
else  in  the  world  had  the  least  chance." 

As  this  impressed  the  class  as  the  proper 
attitude  for  an  engaged  girl,  the  applause  was 
hearty,  and  the  blushing  Judith  interpreted  it 
as  a  finish  to  her  remarks,  and  retreated 
in  charming  confusion.  But  the  applause 
dropped  into  instantaneous  silence  as  Anne 
Gordon  arose.  Anne's  appearance  in  the 
enclosure  had  surprised  every  one. 

"I  haven't  much  of  a  photograph  to  show 
you,"  said  Anne  holding  up  a  kodak  picture  in 
which  three  diminutive  figures  appeared  seated 
under  an  apple  tree.  "The  one  in  the  middle 
is  Elmer  Wharton.  He  looks  very  tiny,  but 
believe  me,  he's  longer  than  our  engagement." 

Anne  stopped  to  laugh,  and  the  class  laughed 
with  her. 


THE  END  OF  SCHOOL  LIFE  277 

"I  had  a  letter  from  Elmer  yesterday," 
Anne  continued,  "a  very  particular  letter.  I 
can't  say  it  was  a  great  surprise  to  me,  though 
you  all  seem  so  astonished.  And  in  this  letter 
Elmer  told  me  a  number  of  things  he  meant  to 
say  to  me  as  soon  as  I  got  home.  But  I 
thought  of  to-night,  and  I  couldn't  see  why  I 
shouldn't  be  engaged  the  day  before  Com- 
mencement as  well  as  the  day  after.  So  I 
telegraphed  him,  yes." 

Amid  the  shrieks  of  laughter  due  to  this 
frank  acknowledgment,  Peggy  was  called,  and 
she  held  up  her  photograph  with  an  engaging 
pride. 

"I  fancy  there  aren't  many  of  you  who  need 
to  be  introduced  to  Graham  Wylie,  for  he's 
been  very  much  in  evidence  ever  since  I 
entered  college.  I  don't  know  any  way  of 
doing  justice  to  the  subject,  but  when  I  feel 
strongly  about  anything,  I'm  very  likely  to 
drop  into  poetry,  like  Mr.  Wegg." 

Peggy,  who  had  been  brought  up  on  Dickens 
as  if  she  had  been  a  girl  of  the  fifties,  had 
forgotten  how  few  of  her  contemporaries  had 
ever  heard  of  Mr.  Wegg.  Warned  of  her  slip 


278  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

by  the  blank  faces  that  looked  back  at  her,  she 
began  to  recite  the  lines  she  had  written  in  sheer 
desperation  the  previous  evening,  after  she 
was  supposed  to  be  in  bed. 

"It  isn't  because  he's  six  feet  two 
With  shoulders  to  match  his  height, 

That  I  'm  happy  and  proud  to  be  facing  you 
On  this  very  eventful  night. 

"It  isn't  because  his  face  is  fine, 

Clear-cut,  like  a  cameo, 
That  I  value  the  right  to  call  him  mine 

More  than  any  one  here  can  know. 

"It  isn't  because  he's  so  very  wise; 

"We  both  could  improve  right  there. 
His  faults  are  plain  to  the  kindest  eyes, 

And  I  know  that  I  have  my  share. 

"He's  not  perfection — to  hint  at  this 
Would  waken  his  scornful  mirth. 

And  yet  he  has  made  me — just  as  he  is — 
The  happiest  girl  on  earth. 

"I  know  he  is  built  of  the  sterling  stuff 
Of  which  manly  men  are  made. 


THE  END  OF  SCHOOL  LIFE  279 

And  that  glad  certainty  is  enough 
To  render  me  unafraid. 

"As  we  scatter  to  go  our  devious  ways 
Like  sparks  from  the  anvil  hurled, 

I  want  you  to  think  of  me  all  your  days, 
As  the  proudest  girl  in  the  world." 

The  applause  that  greeted  Peggy's  effort 
was  not  due  chiefly  to  the  quality  of  her  verses, 
nor  even  to  the  charm  of  her  undisguised  hap- 
piness. The  Editorial  Staff  of  the  Annual 
had  leaked  out.  It  had  been  whispered  about 
that  if  it  had  not  been  for  Peggy's  pro- 
tests, the  Annual  would  have  contained  a  satir- 
ical attack  on  a  stricken  man,  which  would 
have  rendered  its  circulation  impossible.  The 
clapping  died  down,  and  then  broke  out  again, 
as  if  to  emphazie  the  fact  that  it  was  a  per- 
sonal tribute. 

And  so  one  after  another,  the  girls  in  the 
enclosure  introduced  the  possessors  of  the 
names  they  themselves  would  some  day  bear, 
and  having  finished,  went  laughing  back  to 
their  seats.  The  photographs  were  passed 
about  for  examination  and  the  ballots  distri- 


280  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

buted.  The  voting  was  a  somewhat  protracted 
process  due,  doubtless,  to  the  fact  that  so  much 
was  at  stake.  But  in  course  of  time  the  ballots 
were  collected  and  the  judges  retired  to  count 
them,  the  girls  filling  in  the  interval  with 
college  songs. 

The  announcement  of  the  result  of  the 
balloting  came  as  a  great  surprise  to  Peggy. 
For  the  recipient  of  the  stick  pin  was  not 
Graham  but  Philip  Carpenter.  Judith,  blush- 
ing very  prettily,  made  the  speech  of  ac- 
ceptance in  behalf  of  her  fiance,  and  took  the 
pin. 

"I  wish  to  say  to  you  all,"  said  the  class 
president,  "that  twenty-five  dollars  is  deposited 
with  the  treasurer  for  the  purchase  of  a 
wedding-present  for  the  first  of  our  number  to 
marry.  I  can  only  say  it  can't  be  spent  too 
soon  to  suit  me.  It's  time,"  she  added 
severely,  "that  somebody  was  disproving  the 
slander  that  college  women  care  only  for  civic 
reform  and  settlement  work  and  teaching 
school,  and  that  home  and  husbands  don't 
matter  to  them  at  all." 

Priscilla     glanced     discreetly     in     Peggy's 


THE  END  OF  SCHOOL  LIFE  281 

direction,  but  Peggy  was  looking  at  the  table. 
Indeed  her  expression  remained  thoughtful  till 
the  first  toast  was  given,  and  she  stood  with 
the  others  to  drink  to  her  alma  mater  in  a 
draught  of  fruit  punch. 

It  was  not  till  they  were  on  their  way  home 
that  Priscilla  discovered  the  reason  for  Peggy's 
temporary  abstraction.  For  while  they  were 
talking  of  something  entirely  different,  Peggy 
suddenly  exclaimed,  "Do  you  suppose  it  was 
the  uniform  that  dazzled  them?" 

"I  don't  quite  understand  you,  Peggy." 

"Why,  that  vote,  you  know.  Of  course 
Judith's  lieutenant  is  a  very  good  looking 
fellow,  but  the  idea  of  comparing  him  to 
Graham. ' ' 

Priscilla  looked  at  her  friend  askance  and 
said  nothing. 

"I  have  a  photograph  of  Graham  in  uni- 
form," Peggy  continued,  "and  now  I  wish 
I'd  brought  that.  But  I  hadn't  any  idea  it 
would  count  so  much. ' ' 

« '  Peggy, ' '  began  Priscilla  faintly.  * '  Will  you 
promise  not  to  be  angry  if  I  tell  you  some- 
thing?" 


282  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

"Of    course.    Why    should    I    be    angry?" 

"Well,  then,  I  voted  for  Philip  Carpenter." 

Peggy  looked  at  her  in  seemingly  speechless 
amazement.  "But  why?"  she  asked  at  last. 

"Because — well,  there  could  be  only  one 
reason  for  that,  Peggy,  because  I  thought  him 
the  handsomest  man  in  the  collection.  His 
nose  is  wonderful. ' ' 

"And  so  is  Graham's.  I  never  saw  a  more 
perfect  nose." 

"Philip's  eyes  are  so  big  and  beautiful." 

"A  little  too  big,  it  seems  to  me.  It  gives 
him  a  rather  girly  look.  Now  Graham's  eyes 
are  just  large  enough." 

Priscilla  burst  into  an  irrepressible  shriek  of 
laughter.  '  *  I  wonder  if  it  ever  occurred  to  you, 
Peggy,  that  you  might  be  a  little  bit  preju- 
diced." 

It  was  plain  that  such  an  ide,a  had  never  oc- 
curred to  Peggy.  She  looked  blank  for  a 
moment  and  then  joined  in  Priscilla 's  helpless 
laughter.  "I  suppose,"  she  owned  when  again 
she  could  find  her  voice,  "that  it's  just  as  well 
that  tastes  differ." 

They  parted  at  Priscilla 's  door,  kissing  each 


THE  END  OF  SCHOOL  LIFE  283 

other  good-night,  a  somewhat  unusual  cere- 
mony, far  they  were  not  girls  who  made  a 
parade  of  affection.  Peggy,  who  had  started 
toward  her  own  home,  suddenly  turned  back  as 
if  she  had  forgotten  something.  Priscilla 
hurried  down  the  steps  to  meet  her. 

"Priscilla,  do  you  realize  that  to-morrow  is 
Commencement  Day?  What  a  little  time  it 
seems  since  we  entered  as  Freshman.  Don't 
you  remember  how  scared  we  were,  and  how  in 
awe  of  the  Seniors?  And  now,  Priscilla  our 
school  life  is  over." 

And  much  to  Priscilla 's  astonishment,  and 
even  more  to  her  own,  Peggy  burst  into  tears. 


CHAPTER  XX 

A  SURPRISE 

BATHER  to  the  surprise  of  those  who  knew 
her  best,  Peggy  had  decided  on  a  church 
wedding.  But  when  she  came  to  give  her 
reasons,  the  decision  seemed  characteristic, 
after  all. 

' ll  think  this  is  the  dearest  house  in  the 
world.  When  Graham  and  I  come  back  from 
South  America,  I  hope  we  can  find  one  just  like 
it — and  on  Friendly  Terrace,  too.  But  it's 
not  what  you'd  call  spacious.  A  dozen  extra 
people  crowd  it,  and  it  makes  you  uncomfort- 
able to  have  a  wedding  and  leave  out  so  many. ' ' 

"Our  wedding  seems  likely  to  be  a  unique 
affair,"  grinned  Graham.  "From  the  looks  of 
Peggy's  list,  the  guests  will  make  up  in  variety 
what  they  lack  in  exclusiveness.  What  do  you 
think  of  her  asking  the  Bonds?" 

"Now,  Graham,  that's  not  fair.    I  haven't 

284 


A  SURPRISE  285 


any  idea  of  asking  the  Bond  family.  I  only 
said  that  Elvira  had  improved  so  much  that  I 
felt  like  encouraging  her  by  sending  her  an 
invitation. ' ' 

''And  the  Dunns.  She's  got  them  down." 
For  all  matrimonial  responsibilities  loomed  so 
close,  Graham's  boyish  fondness  for  teasing 
remained  one  of  his  most  prominent  char- 
acteristics. 

''Why,  Graham  Wylie!  Not  the  Dunns  at 
all.  Just  Jimmy !  And  he 's  doing  so  well  and 
looks  as  nice  as  any  boy." 

"And  she  says  she's  going  to  have  her 
Sunday  school  class,  one  and  all." 

"Well,  I  should  think  so.  I've  taught  those 
girls  ever  since  they  came  out  of  the  infant 
room,  and  they're  darlings.  And  it  would 
break  their  hearts  if  I  were  married  and  they 
weren't  there  to  see." 

Now  that  her  college  life  was  over,  Peggy 
had  thrown  herself  joyously  into  her  planning 
for  the  next  thing.  Ruth,  as  Graham's  sister, 
was  to  be  the  maid  of  honor,  Priscilla  and  Amy 
bridesmaids.  They  decided  on  their  gowns 
after  hours  and  hours  of  delicious  deliberation. 


286  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

For  a  July  wedding,  organdie  was  the  thing — 
the  sheerest  pale  pink  organdie,  with  pink  roses 
to  match  on  their  wide  hats.  "You'll  be 
dreams, ' '  Peggy  declared  ecstatically.  *  *  Every- 
body'11  say  so." 

"Nonsense!"  scoffed  Amy,  "As  if  people  at 
a  wedding  ever  looked  at  anybody  but  the 
bride!" 

"I  had  a  letter  from  Alice,  yesterday,"  ex- 
claimed Peggy,  changing  the  subject.  "She 
thinks  little  Irma  had  better  be  the  flower-girl 
instead  of  Dorothy.  She  says  Dorothy  has 
been  shooting  up  so  fast  lately,  that  now  she 's 
lanky  and  self-conscious,  and  that  Irma  is 
plump  and  adorable.  I  only  hope  dear  little 
Dorothy  won't  feel  left  out.  That  would  spoil 
everything. ' ' 

Robert  Carey  was  to  be  Graham's  best  man, 
a  decision  which  pleased  Peggy  immensely. 
Most  of  the  ushers  were  young  men  the  girls 
knew  more  or  less,  though  Graham  had  included 
in  the  number  a  comparative  new-comer  at  the 
office,  Kennedy  by  name,  with  whom  he  was  on 
especially  friendly  terms.  "You  ought  to 
bring  him  out  some  evening,"  suggested 


A  SURPRISE  287 


Peggy,"    and    not   wait    till   just    before    the 
wedding  to  introduce  him." 

"No,  that's  right.  I'll  ask  him  to-morrow  to 
set  a  time." 

When  Graham  appeared  shortly  after  dinner 
the  following  evening,  Peggy  and  Priscilla  were 
addressing  invitations.  Graham  seated  him- 
self lazily  in  the  arm  chair  and  congratulated 
them  on  their  industry.  "Have  you  addressed 
all  that  pile  to-day?" 

"Yes,  sir.  We've  been  working  ever  since  I 
got  back  from  the  dressmaker's,  about  four 
o  'clock.  Priscilla  stayed  to  dinner  so  as  not  to 
lose  any  time. ' ' 

There  was  a  brief  silence.  Two  pairs  of  pens 
scratched  busily  while  Graham  entertained 
himself  by  watching  the  anxious  pucker  of 
Peggy's  mouth  as  she  wrote  each  new  address. 
"By  the  way,"  he  remarked,  "He's  coming  out 
to-night. ' ' 

"Who  is?" 

"Kennedy." 

The  scratching  of  the  pens  came  to  an  abrupt 
stop.  "Priscilla,"  Peggy  cried  in  tones  of 
horror,  "Graham  has  asked  that  Mr.  Ken- 


288  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

nedy  to  call  and  he's  coming  this  evening." 

"You  told  me  to  ask  him,"  Graham  de- 
fended himself. 

' '  Of  course,  I  want  him  to  come.  But  I  don 't 
want  him  to  descend  on  me  without  warning, 
and  get  the  impression  that  you  are  going  to 
marry  a  frump." 

"Why,  I  was  just  thinking  how  nice  you 
looked — both  of  you,"  Graham  declared, 
kindly  including  Priscilla,  who  scorned  to 
acknowledge  the  compliment.  She  rose,  re- 
turned her  pen  to  the  writing  desk,  and  said 
briefly,  "I'm  off." 

' '  Put  on  your  glad  rags  and  come  back,  Pris- 
cilla," begged  Peggy,  who  also  was  making 
preparations  for  a  retreat. 

1  i  Oh,  I  think  not.  Mr.  Kennedy  isn  't  coming 
to  see  me." 

"It'll  be  ever  so  much  nicer  if  he  meets  some 
of  you  before  the  last  minute.  Euth  says  she 's 
got  to  put  in  this  evening  letter  writing,  and 
Amy  and  Bob  are  going  somewhere." 

"Oh,  very  well.  I'll  be  back  after  a  little." 
Priscilla  spoke  nonchalantly,  but  as  a  matter 
of  fact,  she  was  glad  of  Peggy's  insistence. 


A  SURPRISE  289 


Now  that  the  time  was  growing  so  short,  she 
grudged  every  hour  she  was  away  from  her 
friend.  As  she  left  by  the  door,  Peggy  ran  up 
the  stairs,  leaving  Graham  to  the  companion- 
ship of  his  own  agreeable  anticipations. 

Peggy  was  back  in  about  twenty  minutes, 
looking,  in  Graham 's  estimation,  very  much  the 
same,  except  that  her  dress  was  a  lighter  blue 
than  the  other,  and  her  hair,  having  been  freshly 
combed,  did  not  show  as  much  of  the  curl.  He 
expressed  his  opinion  and  Peggy  smiled 
tolerantly. 

"I  wore  that  old  thing  because  a  drop  of  ink 
more  or  less  wouldn't  matter.  It's  as  old  as 
the  hills,  and  I  made  it  when  I  didn't  know  as 
much  about  dress-making  as  I  do  now.  Of 
course  I  like  to  have  you  think  I  look  nice,  no 
matter  what  I  wear,  but  now  you're  going  to 
be  married,  you'd  better  learn  more  discrimina- 
tion in  regard  to  clothes.  It  would  be  dread- 
ful to  have  a  new  dress  and  you  not  able  to  see 
that  it  was  any  prettier  than  the  old  one." 

"Very  well.  Suppose  you  start  on  my  edu- 
.  cation  right  away.  Tell  me  the  fine  points 
about  the  rig  you've  got  on."  But  before 


290  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

Peggy  could  begin,  the  bell  rang,  and  Graham 's 
education  was  left  incomplete  for  the  time 
being. 

Mr.  Kennedy  was  a  slender,  pleasant- 
mannered  young  man,  who  looked  considerably 
older  than  Graham,  partly  perhaps,  because  he 
wore  eye-glasses.  As  Peggy  greeted  him,  she 
was  conscious  of  something  hauntingly  familiar 
in  his  face.  "I  haven't  met  you  before,  have 
I?"  she  asked. 

"It  hardly  seems  that  I  could  have  met  you 
and  not  remember  it,"  said  young  Kennedy 
gallantly.  "I'm  very  sure  I've  seen  you  be- 
fore, however." 

"And  I  believe  I've  seen  you,  but  I  don't 
know  where." 

"Hitchcock  would  say,"  remarked  Graham, 
' '  that  probably  you  had  been  well  acquainted  in 
Nineveh  or  Babylon  or  some  other  ancient 
burg." 

Mr.  Kennedy  smiled,  and  took  the  chair 
Graham  had  pulled  forward  for  him.  "Who's 
Hitchcock?"  he  asked. 

' '  Oh,  a  nut  that  Peggy  used  to  have  here  till 
I  told  her  she'd  have  to  choose  between  us." 


A  SURPRISE  291 


" Graham,  what  a  misleading  thing  to  say." 

1  'Well,  it  might  give  the  wrong -impression,  I 
confess.  Peggy  didn't  care  much  about  him 
herself,  but  one  of  her  friends  had  a  case  on 
him." 

"Sh!"  warned  Peggy,  in  an  agony  as  she 
heard  Priscilla's  footsteps  outside.  She  filled 
the  somewhat  awkward  pause  by  springing  to 
her  feet,  crying  as  she  ran  to  the  door,  "You 
needn't  ring;  I  hear  you." 

The  results  of  the  half  hour  Priscilla  had 
given  to  vanity  were  more  evident,  Graham 
thought,  than  in  Peggy's  case.  Peggy  could 
be  disheveled  and  still  irresistible.  Priscilla's 
rather  stately  beauty  was  more  exacting  in  its 
demands.  In  her  dress  of  pale  green  voile, 
which  set  off  her  clear  pallor  and  the  beauty  of 
her  smooth,  dark  hair,  she  looked  the  incarnate 
spirit  of  spring.  Even  Graham  stared. 

Peggy,  her  arm  slipped  caressingly  through 
Priscilla's,  led  her  forward.  "Priscilla,  this 
is  Graham's  friend,  Mr.  Kennedy.  Miss 
Combs — " 

Peggy  stopped  short,  Priscilla  had  jumped. 
Mr.  Kennedy's  conventional  smile  had  changed 


292  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

to  startled  recognition.  "Why,  you  know  each 
other,"  Peggy  cried. 

"Only — why,  surely,  Peggy,  you  remember." 

Peggy's  vague,  irritating  certainty  of  some- 
thing familiar  in  Mr.  Kennedy's  face  was  sud- 
denly transformed  to  recollection.  "Oh,  of 
course.  The  Green  Parrot." 

* '  Oh,  of  course !  The  Green  Parrot ! ' '  mocked 
Graham,  who  had  risen  on  Priscilla's  entrance, 
and  now  stood  looking  from  one  to  another  of 
the  trio.  "Makes  it  perfectly  clear." 

They  took  their  seats,  and  Peggy  explained, 
helped  out  by  suggestions  from  the  others. 
As  they  recalled  the  absurd  experience,  the 
three  narrators  went  off  into  fits  of  laughter, 
but  the  audience  maintained  a  dignified  calm. 

"Take  my  word  for  it,  John,  it's  an  inscrut- 
able sex.  Now,  I  would  have  sworn  that  this 
young  woman  hadn't  a  thought  I  didn't  share, 
and  look  what  she 's  been  keeping  from  me,  lo ! 
thes-e  many  months.  When  we  're  alone  I  shall 
expect  you  to  give  me  a  full  account  of  what 
really  happened." 

For  some  reason  the  discovery  that  Graham's 
friend,  Kennedy,  was  the  young  man  whose  cof- 


A  SURPRISE 


fee  cup  had  been  invaded  by  Priscilla's  roll 
seemed  to  put  him  at  once  on  the  footing  of  an. 
old  acquaintance.  They  had  a  very  jolly  eve- 
ning, and  it  was  not  till  after  ten  that  Priscilla 
said,  "Graham,  I  think  you'd  better  take  me 
home,  now.  I've  got  a  busy  day  before  me." 

"You  have  indeed,  poor  dear,"  Peggy  cried. 
"I  expect  you  to  finish  addressing  those  invita- 
tions and  do  any  number  of  errands.  These 
are  trying  times  for  my  friends,  Mr.  Kennedy. 
They  have  hardly  a  minute  in  the  twenty-four 
hours  that  they  can  call  their  own." 

The  young  man  smiled  at  her  in  the  ab- 
stracted fashion  of  one  whose  thoughts  are  on 
something  else.  "Won't  you  let  me  be  your  es- 
cort?" he  asked  Priscilla.  "It  would  give  me 
the  greatest  pleasure." 

"Thanks,  but  it's  only  a  step,  and  my  going 
early  won't  break  up  Graham's  evening,  for 
he'll  come  directly  back."  She  softened  her 
refusal  by  giving  him  her  hand  and  saying 
pleasantly,  "I'm  glad  to  have  met  you  prop- 
erly at  last,  with  a  real  introduction,  you 
know. ' ' 

"I  shall  look  forward  to  the  next  time,"  said 


294  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

young  Kennedy,  with  rather  more  ardor  than 
conventional  courtesy  required.  "This  is  our 
third  meeting,  I  believe. ' ' 

"Third?"  exclaimed  Peggy,  pricking  up  her 
ears.  "Why,  when  was  the  second?" 

"At  one  of  the  football  games  last  fall,"  ex- 
plained Priscilla.  "I  was  there  with  Horace 
Hitchcock,  and  Mr.  Kennedy  sat  next  me." 
And  then  recalling  the  suspicious  glances  Hor- 
ace had  shot  in  the  direction  of  the  guiltless  Mr. 
Kennedy,  Priscilla  began  to  blush.  The  worst 
of  blushing  is  that  it  is  much  easier  to  start  it 
than  to  call  a  halt.  There  were  innumerable 
things  connected  with  the  thought  of  Horace 
that  made  Priscilla  uncomfortable,  and  now  she 
found  herself  blushing  for  them  all.  The  tide 
of  color  flooded  her  smooth  forehead  and  dyed 
her  throat.  Peggy's  observant  eyes  detected 
an  unmistakable  shadow  on  Mr.  Kennedy 's  erst- 
while radiant  face. 

Later,  when  Graham  and  herself  were  alone, 
she  scolded  him  a  little.  "You  oughtn't  to  have 
said  that  a  friend  of  mine  had  a  case  on  Hitch- 
cock. Now  Mr.  Kennedy  knows  you  meant 
Priscilla." 


A  SURPRISE  295 


"Well,  is  that  such  a  tragedy?" 

"Couldn't  you  mention  to  him  some  day  that 
Horace  did  admire  Priscilla,  but  that  now  he's 
safely  married  to  another.  You  could  bring  it 
in  in  a  casual  way,  you  know." 

Graham  looked  at  her  hard.  "My  dear 
Peggy,"  he  said,  "Just  because  you  yourself 
have  been  fortunate— unusually  fortunate  I 
might  say — in  your  love  affairs,  don't  let  that 
lead  you  into  trying  your  hand  at  matchmaking. 
Fooling  with  high  explosives  is  child's  play 
compared  to  that,  believe  me." 

But  instead  of  seeming  impressed  by  the 
warning,  Peggy  only  answered  dreamily, 
"When  he  doesn't  see  Horace  at  the  wedding, 
he'll  probably  begin  to  suspect  that  it's  ancient 
history.  If  only  Priscilla  could  learn  to  speak 
of  him  without  blushing." 


CHAPTER    XXI 

A    MISSING    BRIDE 

IT  was  two  days  before  Peggy's  wedding, 
and  in  the  front  room  downstairs  Peggy  was 
looking  around  complacently  on  her  wedding 
presents.  They  were  very  much  like  the  wed- 
ding presents  of  other  prospective  brides.  A 
few  were  admirably  suited  to  the  needs  of  a 
young  couple  of  moderate  means,  about  to  start 
house-keeping.  Others  would  have  been  useful 
in  the  establishments  of  wealthy  people  who  ex- 
pected to  do  a  great  deal  of  entertaining.  And 
there  were  still  others  whose  use  was  prob- 
lematical, anywhere  and  under  any  circum- 
stances. 

Peggy 's  mood,  however,  was  far  from  critical. 
Each  gift  as  it  came  had  given  her  the  keenest 
pleasure,  and  if  it  were  impossible  to  find  any- 
thing admirable  in  the  article  itself,  she  could 
always  say,  "How  awfully  kind  of  them  to  send 
it.  Everybody's  being  perfectly  dear  to  me." 

296 


A  MISSING  BRIDE  297 

She  approached  every  newly  arrived  package 
with  the  same  feeling  with  which  she  had  once 
taken  up  a  bulging  Christmas  stocking. 

The  clock  in  the  dining  room,  a  pert  little  time- 
piece with  a  peremptory  voice,  struck  three. 
It  was  characteristic  of  this  particular  clock 
always  to  strike  the  hour  as  if  it  were  reminding 
somebody  of  something.  On  this  occasion  it 
reminded  Peggy  that  she  had  an  engagement 
with  the  dressmaker  at  half  past  three,  and  that 
she  was  to  call  for  Ruth,  who  had  promised  to 
accompany  her.  As  it  was  impossible  to  take 
along  a  crowd  of  girls  to  the  dressmaker's 
rather  cramped  quarters,  Peggy  avoided  hard 
feeling  by  inviting  a  different  girl  each  day. 

Peggy  had  hardly  reached  the  top  of  the 
stairs  when  the  bell  rang,  and  Sally  came  rush- 
ing from  the  kitchen  to  answer  it.  The  pros- 
pect of  a  wedding  in  the  family  had  so  excited 
Sally  that  she  was  even  less  responsible  for  her 
conduct  than  usual.  Almost  the  only  thing  she 
could  be  trusted  to  do  was  to  answer  the  door- 
bell, but  as  the  bell  rang  very  often,  she  suc- 
ceeded in  making  herself  rather  useful.  On 
this  occasion  a  swarthy  woman  stood  outside, 


298  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

and  in  a  quick,  parrot-like  fashion  said  some- 
thing Sally  did  not  understand. 

"You  want  to  see  Miss  Peggy?"  Sally  de- 
manded. Such  wits  as  she  possessed  were  not 
on  duty,  for  ordinarily  she  would  have 
recognized  the  stranger's  errand,  and  sent  her 
about  her  business.  As  the  woman  nodded, 
Sally  at  once  admitted  her,  showing  her  into 
the  room  where  the.  wedding  presents  stood 
about  in  picturesque  confusion. 

"Miss  Peggy,"  shrieked  Sally,  forgetting 
for  the  moment  the  lesson  impressed  on  her  on 
innumerable  occasions  that  she  was  not  to  save 
her  steps  by  calling  up  the  stairs,  "Somebody 
to  see  you." 

It  was  a  minute  or  two  before  Peggy  came 
down,  and  Sally  had  retreated  to  the  kitchen 
in  the  meantime.  Peggy  who  had  naturally 
expected  to  see  an  acquaintance,  was  rather 
startled  to  be  confronted  by  a  dark-skinned 
woman  with  jet  black  eyes  and  an  oily  voice. 

"Buy  lace,  lady?  Very  cheap:  three  inch 
wide  up  to  nine  inch.  Very  cheap ! ' ' 

Peggy  replied  politely  that  she  did  not  care 
for  any  lace,  reflecting  as  she  spoke  that  had  the 


A  MISSING  BRIDE  299 

woman  presented  herself  a  few  months  earlier, 
she  might  have  thought  it  worth  while  to  ex- 
amine her  stock.  Having  had  some  experience 
in  the  persistence  of  her  kind,  she  was  surprised 
when  the  dark  woman  took  her  refusal  as  final, 
and  meekly  let  herself  out.  Peggy  stepped  into 
the  kitchen  to  warn  Sally  against  her  late  in- 
discretion, and  came  back  through  the  hall,  re- 
flecting that  she  must  hurry,  since  the  dress- 
maker did  not  like  to  be  kept  waiting.  As  she 
passed  the  open  door  of  the  room  the  vender  of 
lace  had  so  lately  quitted,  she  stopped  and  stood 
transfixed. 

One  of  her  wedding  presents  was  missing. 
She  knew  exactly  the  place  where  it  had  stood 
on  the  center  table,  flanked  on  one  side  by  a 
pair  of  book-ends,  and  on  the  other  by  a  cloi- 
sonne vase.  The  gap  left  by  its  removal  was 
as  obvious  to  Peggy's  startled  eyes  as  the 
breach  in  a  smile,  due  to  a  missing  tooth.  In- 
stantly she  understood  that  there  was  no 
mystery  about  its  disappearance.  She  had  seen 
it  not  ten  minutes  before,  and  the  only  person 
who  had  entered  the  room  since  then  was  the 
woman  with  lace  to  sell. 


300  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

The  discovery  went  to  Peggy's  head.  The 
stealing  of  any  of  her  other  possessions  would 
not  have  affected  her  in  just  the  same  way. 
But  these  were  her  wedding  presents,  invested 
with  a  certain  sanctity  because  of  the  goodwill 
they  represented,  and  the  occasion  which  led  to 
their  bestowal.  It  never  once  occurred  to 
Peggy  that  she  could  submit  to.  su'ch  an  out- 
rage. 

She  ran  out  of  the  house,  looking  up  and  down 
the  street,  and  immediately  caught  sight  of  the 
woman  she  wanted.  Apparently  she  had  sus- 
pended business  for  the  day,  for  she  was  walk- 
ing, rapidly  and  making  no  attempt  to  dispose 
of  her  wares  in  any  of  the  houses  slier  passed. 
Peggy  promptly  started  in  pursuit.  Her  idea 
was  to  follow  the  woman,  keeping  her  in  sight 
until  she  could  encounter  a  policeman.  Peggy 
had  no  desire  to  deprive  any  human  creature, 
however  erring,  of  her  liberty.  She  hoped  the 
officer  of  the  law  would  force  the  surrender  of 
her  ill-gotten  gains  without  formally  arresting 
her.  But  whatever  the  consequences^  she  meant 
to  recover  her  property. 

According  to  the  calendar'  it  was  the  last  day 


A  MISSING  BRIDE  301 

of  June,  but  the  thermometer  proclaimed  it 
mid-July.  The  heated  air  quivered.  The 
streets  seemed  as  silent  as  the  thoroughfares 
of  a  deserted  village.  A  block  from  Peggy's 
home,  the  woman  took  the  right-hand  turning 
and  went  down  Eossiter  Street.  Peggy  fol- 
lowed, walking  rapidly  in  her  determination  to 
gain  on  the  quick-walking  figure  on  ahead. 

There  blocks  on  Kossiter  Street,  and  then  the 
woman  turned  north,  giving  Peggy  a  clew  to  her 
plan.  Friendly  Terrace  lay  near  the  outskirts 
of  the  city.  A  walk  of  a  mile  from  Peggy's 
home  brought  one  into  a  section  sparsely 
settled.  It  looked  as  though  Peggy's  quarry 
were  making  for  the  open  country. 

Oh,  for  a  policeman!  Peggy  rather  unjustly 
resented  the  scarcity  of  officers  of  the  law,  for- 
getting how  seldom  their  services  were  required 
in  the  law-abiding  part  of  town.  She  dis- 
covered, too,  that  the  woman  pursued  was  un- 
cannily aware  of  her  pursuer.  Though  ap- 
parently she  never  looked  back,  she  accommo- 
dated her  pace  to  Peggy's,  accelerating  her 
speed,  as  Peggy  quickened  hers,  so  that  the 
distance  between  them  remained  about  the 


302  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

same  in  spite  of  Peggy's  efforts  to  lessen  it. 

Owing  to  the  lack  of  policemen,  had  any  re- 
liable looking  man  passed  her  in  a  car,  Peggy 
believed  herself  capable  of  stopping  him  and 
commandeering  his  services.  But  apparently 
the  heat  had  driven  every  one  indoors.  Two 
or  three  delivery  wagons  passed  with  small 
boys  handling  the  reins.  One  machine  glided 
by,  but  the  driver  was  a  woman.  After  an 
hour's  chase  the  two  participants  in  the  singu- 
lar game  of  " Follow  my  Leader,"  came  out 
upon  the  turnpike,  stretching  away  to  the  north, 
white  and  dusty  and  hot  in  the  brilliant  sun. 
Here  the  houses  were  scattered  and  stood  back 
from  the  road.  The  likelihood  of  encountering 
a  policeman  had  become  extremely  faint.  But 
Peggy  set  her  teeth  and  pressed  forward. 

Graham  got  off  half  an  hour  early  this 
particular  afternoon,  and  reached  Peggy's  a 
little  before  five.  Irma,  dimpled  and  sweet,  a 
replica  of  Dorothy  a  few  years  earlier,  rushed 
to  meet  him  squealing  with  delight,  while 
Dorothy  smiled  a  welcome,  her  lips  pinched 
tightly  together.  One  of  Dorothy's  upper 
front  teeth  was  missing  and  Dorothy  was  pain- 


A  MISSING  BRIDE  303 

fully  conscious  of  the  lack  every  minute  that 
she  was  awake. 

Graham  kissed  his  prospective  nieces, 
greeted  the  older  members  of  the  family 
cordially,  if  less  effusively,  and  put  the  in- 
evitable question,  " Where's  Peggy?" 

"Oh,  at  the  dressmaker's  of  course,"  sighed 
Mrs.  Eaymond.  "I  hope  she  won't  keep  the 
poor  child  very  long.  It's  so  dreadfully 
warm." 

The  telephone  tinkled,  and  Dick  went  to 
answer  it.  He  scowled  as  he  listened.  "Who 
did  you  say  it  was?  Oh,  wait  a  minute!" 
He  turned  to  his  mother.  "I  thought  you  said 
Peggy  had  gone  to  the  dressmaker's." 

"She  has.  She  had  a  fitting  at  half  past 
three." 

"Well,  this  is  the  dressmaker,  and  she  says 
Peggy  hasn't  come." 

"Let  me  speak  to  her."  Mrs.  Eaymond 
crossed  to  the  phone,  with  an  air  of  expecting 
to  clear  up  the  puzzle  immediately.  And 
hardly  had  she  made  herself  known,  when  the 
door  opened  and  Ruth  appeared.  "What's  be- 
come of  Peggy  f  She  was  to  call  for  me  a  little 


304  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

after  three,  and  I've  had  my  hat  on  waiting  for 
her  nearly  two  hours. " 

What  had  become  of  Peggy?  She  had  not 
kept  her  engagement  with  the  dressmaker,  and 
Kuth  knew  nothing  of  her  whereabouts.  Mrs. 
Raymond  called  up  Priscilla  and  Amy,  each  of 
whom  disavowed  having  seen  Peggy  since  noon. 
And  then  as  there  seemed  nothing  better  to  do, 
she  went  on  calling  neighbors  and  friends  and 
trades-people,  growing  more  and  more  puzzled, 
moment  by  moment.  For  no  one  had  seen 
Peggy. 

It  finally  occurred  to  Peggy's  sister,  Alice,  to 
make  inquiries  in  the  kitchen.  Sally  informed 
her  that  Miss  Peggy  had  come  into  the  kitchen 
with  her  hat  on,  and  had  said  something  about 
the  dressmaker.  The  new  girl,  who  had  been 
engaged  to  help  out  for  the  few  weeks  before 
the  wedding,  confirmed  Sally's  story,  adding 
that  it  was  a  little  after  three  when  Peggy  left 
the  house.  Obviously  Peggy  had  started  out 
with  the  intention  of  keeping  her  appointment, 
and  obviously  she  had  not  done  so. 

Dinner  was  ready  at  six  o'clock,  but  no  one 
was  ready  for  dinner.  Peggy's  failure  to  ap- 


A  MISSING  BRIDE  305 

pear  at  meal-time  added  to  the  general  con- 
sternation. Peggy  was  by  nature  prompt  and 
methodical,  and  she  had  acted  the  role  of  cook 
too  often  not  to  realize  how  the  best  efforts  of 
that  important  functionary  are  frustrated  by 
late  arrivals.  At  quarter  past  six  Mr.  Ray- 
mond went  to  the  telephone  and  called  up  the 
hospitals  one  after  another.  But  the  hot 
sleepy  day  had  not  been  productive  of  auto- 
mobile accidents,  and  the  only  cases  of  sun- 
strokes reported  were  elderly  people,  four  men 
and  one  old  woman. 

Graham  was  very  pale.  A  dreadful  sus- 
picion was  taking  shape  in  his  mind.  Could  it 
be  that,  as  the  second  of  July  drew  near,  Peggy 
had  found  herself  unable  to  face  the  situation? 
Perhaps  he  had  asked  too  much  of  her  when  he 
had  urged  her  accompanying  him  to  South 
America.  He  thought  of  the  innumerable  ties 
that  bound  her  to  her  native  land,  and  yet  he 
had  assumed  that  she  would  be  ready  to  leave 
everything  and  every  one  she  loved,  and  go 
with  him  to  a  land  of  strangers.  Graham  was 
no  more  troubled  by  excessive  humility  than 
other  popular  young  men,  but  in  the  present 


306  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

emergency  he  seemed  to  himself  to  have  put  a 
most  preposterous  estimate  on  the  value  of  his 
own  society.  He  had  a  horrible  conviction 
that,  through  his  demanding  too  much,  Peggy 
was  lost  to  him  forever. 

It  hardly  need  be  said  that  no  one  in  the  anx- 
ious company  shared  this  particular  apprehen- 
sion. At  seven  o'clock  Peggy's  father  made 
up  his  mind  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  ap- 
peal to  the  police.  But  before  he  could  bring 
himself  to  act  on  this  conviction,  the  gate 
clicked  and  Irma,  standing  at  the  window,  her 
nose  flattened  against  the  screen,  exploded  in 
a  series  of  joyful  shrieks. 

"Aunt  Peggy!  Aunt  Peggy!  Oh,  it's  Aunt 
Peggy!" 

And  Peggy  it  was,  though  it  took  a  second 
glance  to  be  sure.  The  perspiration  trickling 
over  her  dusty  face  had  produced  a  curious 
piebald  effect,  and  she  walked  with  a  notice- 
able limp.  They  rushed  to  the  door,  greeting 
her  with  mingled  cries  of  joy  and  reproach. 
All  but  Graham.  He  sat  down  in  the  darkest 
corner  of  the  living  room  and  put  his  hands 


A  MISSING  BRIDE  307 

over  his  face.     The  intensity  of  his  relief  was 
almost  too  much  for  him. 

Peggy  limped  in,  looking  decidedly  ashamed 
of  herself. 

''Have  you  waited  dinner  for  me?  I'm. 
awfully  sorry. " 

"Waited  dinner,"  repeated  Mrs.  Kaymond, 
and  burst  into  tears.  Peggy's  sister  Alice 
caught  her  by  the  shoulders  and  gave  her  a 
sharp  little  shake. 

"Peggy  Raymond,  where  have  you  been  and 
what  have  you  been  doing?  Don't  you  under- 
stand that  we've  been  frightened  to  death 
about  you?" 

Peggy  dropped  into  the  nearest  chair  and 
began  on  her  story.  She  told  of  the  woman 
Sally  had  admitted  to  the  house,  the  missing 
wedding  present,  and  the  purpose  with  which 
she  had  started  in  pursuit.  They  all  listened 
breathlessly,  Graham  left  his  corner  and  stood 
back  of  the  others,  unwilling  to  miss  a  word. 

It  was  not  till  Peggy's  recital  brought  her  to 
the  turnpike  that  she  lost  a  little  of  her  fluency. 
At  this  point  she  hesitated  and  seemed  to  ap- 


308  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

predate  the  difficulty  of  making  matters  clear 
to  her  audience.  "Of  course  I  should  have 
given  up  then.  But  somehow  I  couldn't.  I 
kept  hoping  that  somebody  would  appear,  and 
it  seemed  such  a  shame  when  I'd  followed  that 
thief  so  far,  to  give  up  and  go  back.  I'd  made 
up  my  mind  that  as  soon  as  an  automobile  came 
along,  I'd  ask  for  a  lift.  I  felt  if  I  could  only 
catch  up  with  her  I  could  frighten  her  into 
giving  me  what  belonged  to  me.  But  nobody 
passed  me,  and  then  when  she  got  to  the  old 
toll-gate—" 

Mr.  Raymond  interrupted.  "You  don't 
mean  you  followed  her  to  the  toll  gate  I ' ' 

"Yes,  father.  Or  at  least  I  was  almost  there. 
You  know  there's  a  cross-road  just  beyond  the 
gate,  and  a  Ford  car  came  up  that  cross-road 
and  turned  north  on  the  pike.  And  the  woman 
stopped  it — " 

"Confederates,  I'll  bet,"  cried  Dick. 

"No,  it  looked  as  if  she  were  just  asking 
some  stranger  for  a  ride.  And  as  far  as  they 
knew  she  was  only  a  tired  woman  carrying  a 
bag  and  they  took  her  in.  And  then  I  saw  it 
wasn't  any  use  to  go  further." 


A  MISSING  BRIDE  309 


tt~ 


'You  surprise  me."  Mr.  Raymond's  voice 
was  satirical.  "I  can't  understand  why  you 
didn't  run  after  the  machine." 

Peggy  accepted  the  sarcastic  rejoinder 
meekly.  "Then  I  turned  around  and  came 
home.  But  you  see  I  had  put  on  my  new  brown 
shoes  because  Mrs.  Morley  wanted  to  fit  my 
brown  dress  with  the  shoes  I  was  going  to 
wear  with  it,  and  all  at  once  they  began  to  hurt 
me  terribly.  Instead  of  hurrying  I  had  to 
slow  up,  and  sometimes  I  had  to  stop  and  wait. 
I  never  had  anything  hurt  so." 

"If  you'd  walked  three  blocks  east,"  ex- 
claimed Graham,  speaking  for  the  first  time, 
"you  could  have  got  a  car." 

"I  knew  it,  but  I'd  come  off  without  my 
pocket  book.  I  didn't  have  a  penny  with  me. 
That  was  the  reason  I  didn't  telephone." 

Peggy  looked  about  her  with  a  crestfallen 
air.  While  she  was  far  from  realizing  the  ex- 
tent of  the  alarm  her  family  had  felt,  and 
would  not  have  believed  Graham  had  he  told 
her  of  the  apprehensions  that  had  tortured 
him  through  the  terrible  time  of  waiting,  she 
understood  that  they  had  all  been  worried  and 


310  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

that  she  had  inconvenienced  every  one  by 
making  dinner  late.  " Don't  wait  for  me  any 
longer,"  she  pleaded.  "Have  the  dinner  put 
on,  mother,  and  I'll  be  down  as  soon  as  I've 
washed  up  a  little." 

Mrs,  Raymond  put  her  arm  about  her. 
"Yes,  come  upstairs,  darling.  You  must  have 
something  on  those  blisters  right  away.  Alice, 
tell  Sally  to  put  on  plates  for  Euth  and 
Graham. ' ' 

It  was  while  they  were  eating  lamb  chops, 
which  after  an  hour  and  a  half  in  the  warming 
oven  might  as  well  have  been  anything  else, 
that  some  one  thought  to  put  the  question 
Peggy  had  been  dreading.  "Do  you  know 
what  present  she  stole?" 

Peggy  took  a  hasty  sip  of  her  iced  tea  and 
looked  appealingly  at  her  questioner.  But  her 
reluctant  manner  only  aroused  the  curiosity  of 
every  one. 

"I'll  bet  it  was  the  silver  teapot,"  exclaimed 
Dick. 

"It  doesn't  matter  what's  missing,  as  long 
as  Peggy  herself  is  here  safe  and  sound,"  de- 
clared Mrs.  Raymond  fervently. 


A  MISSING  BRIDE  311 

"But  what  did  she  take?"  insisted  Alice, 
eyeing  her  sister  with  suspicion. 

Again  Peggy  forfeited  herself  with  iced  tea, 
and  her  cheeks,  flushed  by  heat  and  weariness, 
took  on  a  deeper  hue.  "It — it  really  wasn't  so 
valuable, — "  stammered  Peggy.  "You  know 
Elvira  Bond  gave  me  half  a  dozen  teaspoons 
that  she  got  by  saving  soap  wrappers  or  some- 
thing. They  came  in  a  neat  little  case,  and  I 
suppose  the  woman  snatched  the  nearest 
thing  without  looking.  I  didn't  chase  her 
because  the  spoons  were  worth  so  much 
because — well,  it  was  the  principle  of  the 
thing." 

There  was  a  long  moment  of  silence,  and  then 
a  roar  of  laughter.  They  laughed  long  and 
helplessly  and  wiped  their  eyes  and  started  all 
over  again.  As  a  rule  Peggy  could  appreciate 
a  joke,  even  if  it  was  against  herself,  but  on 
this  occasion  a  rather  wry  smile  was  the  best 
she  could  do.  She  was  beginning  to  realize 
that  she  had  been  very  silly. 

"Well,  Graham,"  remarked  Mr.  Raymond 
when  he  could  make  himself  heard,  "In  my 
opinion  you're  assuming  quite  a  responsibility 


312  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

in  planning  to  take  this  young  woman  to  South 
America. ' ' 

Graham's  eyes  met  Peggy's  and  something 
in  his  look  arrested  her  attention,  a  peculiai 
radiance  as  if  he  had  just  heard  a  wonderful 
piece  of  news.  But  all  he  said  was,  "Pn 
ready  to  take  the  risk,  sir." 


CHAPTER  XXII 

A  JULY  WEDDING 

PEGGY'S  brother  Dick  had  parodied  an  old 
rhyme  to  fit  the  occasion  and  sang  it  with  gusto, 
in  season  and  out  of  season.  It  was  Dick's 
voice,  caroling  in  a  high  falsetto,  and  breaking 
ludicrously  on  an  average  of  once  a  line,  that 
woke  Peggy  on  the  most  eventful  morning  of 
her  life. 

"A  wedding  day  in  May 
Is  worth  a  load  of  hay. 
A  wedding  set  for  June 
Is  worth  a  silver  spoon. 
A  wedding  in  July 
Isn't  worth  a  fly." 

Peggy  winked  hard  and  sat  up  in  bed,  turning 
instantly  toward  the  east  windows.  "Oh,"  she 
cried  joyously,  ''what  a  glorious  day!"  And 
so  indeed  it  was.  Apparently  the  weather 
man  had  carefully  selected  whatever  was  best 

313 


314  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

in  all  the  year,  and  combined  his  selections  in- 
to one  perfect  day  in  honor  of  Peggy 's  wedding. 
There  had  been  a  little  rain  the  night  before,  and 
the  air  was  as  sweet  as  if  perfumed  by  June's 
roses.  There  was  a  freshness  that  suggested 
early  spring,  and  something  in  the  breeze  as 
exhilarating  as  October.  Peggy  reflected  com- 
placently that  this  was  just  her  luck. 

She  wondered,  as  she  dressed,  what  she  was  to 
do  with  herself  between  the  hours  of  eight  and 
six.  Her  trunk  was  packed  for  going  away, 
and  the  other  trunks  were  ready  except  for  a 
few  articles  to  be  added  at  the  last  minute. 
She  had  acknowledged  every  gift  she  had  re- 
ceived. The  dressmaker  was  through  with  her, 
and  the  wedding  dress  was  hanging  in  Peggy's 
closet,  with  a  sheet  draped  over  it  that  no 
speck  of  dust  should  mar  its  immaculate  white- 
ness. Peggy  decided  that  her  wedding  day 
was  to  be  characterized  by  elegant  leisure. 

Of  course  this  expectation  was  nat  realized. 
To  begin  with,  there  were  more  presents. 
They  came  by  parcels  post  and  by  express. 
Deliverymen  handed  them  over  as  nonchalantly 
as  if  they  had  been  ordinary  purchases.  Others 


A  JULY  WEDDING  315 

came  by  special  messengers,  who  grinned 
knowingly  when  Peggy  signed  for  them. 
Breakfast  was  hardly  over  when  it  was 
necessary  to  send  for  Graham,  that  he  might 
assist  in  opening  the  packages.  But  Graham 
was  not  as  satisfactory  in  opening  packages  as 
a  number  of  other  people,  Priscilla  and  Amy, 
for  instance.  If  Peggy  cried  ''Isn't  that 
beautiful?"  he  always  looked  straight  at  her 
as  he  said  "yes,"  and  then  it  was  necessary  to 
remind  him  that  he  was  supposed  to  be 
admiring  a  piece  of  silverware  or  glass. 
Peggy  always  said,  "How  beautiful!"  when  a 
package  was  opened.  And  then  if  the  article 
were  something  she  really  wanted,  she  would 
add,  "Isn't  it  lucky,  Graham,  that  some  one 
thought  of  that?  I  don't  see  how  we  could 
have  kept  house  without  it."  And  if  it  were 
something  quite  unsuitable  she  would  cry, 
"How  kind  everybody  is.  I  never  saw  any- 
thing like  it. " 

The  present  from  Peggy's  college  class  came 
the  morning  of  the  wedding  day,  when  it  was 
practically  certain  that  no  one  was  to  be 
married  in  advance  of  Peggy.  It  was  a  very 


316  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

attractive  silver  vase,  with  the  class  motto  en- 
graved about  its  base.  Peggy's  delight  was 
marred  by  one  characteristic  reflection.  "I 
have  so  many  things.  It's  almost  a  pity  this 
didn't  go  to  some  girl  whose  friends  weren't 
so  generous." 

"Any  one  could  have  had  it,"  Graham  re- 
minded her,  "who  was  ready  to  take  the  risk. 
This  is  in  recognition  of  your  courage,  like  the 
Victoria  Cross." 

Of  course  the  wedding  presents  were  not 
going  to  South  America,  but  were  to  be  stored 
against  the  young  people's  return.  "Don't 
you  hate  to  go  away  and  leave  all  these  lovely 
things,  Graham!"  Peggy  asked,  stroking  the 
gleaming  sides  of  a  copper  bowl  as  if  it  had 
been  a  kitten.  And  then  with  her  usual  happy 
faculty  for  seeing  the  bright  side,  she  added, 
"But  think  of  coming  home  and  finding  them 
waiting  for  us!  Why,  it'll  be  like  getting 
married  all  over  again." 

Wedding  presents,  however,  were  not  to  oc- 
cupy Peggy's  thoughts  to  the  exclusion  of 
other  matters.  All  sorts  of  affectionate 
messages  kept  coming,  special  deliveries,  tele- 


A  JULY  WEDDING  317 

grams,  telephone  calls.  A  girl  like  Peggy, 
who  for  twenty-one  years  and  over  has  been 
helping  to  make  the  world  a  happier  place,  is 
likely  to  be  surprised  when  she  comes  to  count 
up  her  friends.  Elaine  Marshall,  who  had 
moved  from  the  city  and  now  lived  with  her 
married  sister,  came  down  for  the  day.  "I 
couldn't  stand  it,  not  to  be  at  your  wedding, 
Peggy,"  she  declared.  And  Lucy  Haines 
walked  in  about  noon,  looking  so  radiant  that 
Peggy  at  once  suspected  an  especial  reason. 
There  was  a  little  pearl  ring  on  the  third  finger 
of  Lucy 's  left  hand  that  Peggy  had  never  seen 
before.  Lucy  blushed  when  she  saw  Peggy's 
contemplative  gaze  focused  on  it. 

"Yes,  Peggy,  it's — it's  Jerry,"  owned  Lucy, 
looking  so  proud  and  happy  that  she  did  not 
seem  even  distantly  related  to  the  disheartened 
girl  who  had  once  thought  it  was  no  use  trying. 
"He's  grown  into  such  a  splendid  fellow. 
Everybody  says  I'm  so  lucky.  And,  Peggy,  if 
it  hadn't  been  for  the  summer  you  spent  at 
Doolittle  Cottage,  it's  not  likely  that  either  of 
us  would  ever  have  amounted  to  anything." 

Mary  Donaldson  called  up  to  say  that  she 


318  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

was  coming  to  the  wedding.  Her  father  and 
cousin  had  promised  to  carry  her  downstairs, 
and  they  were  going  early  so  she  could  be  in 
her  place  before  any  one  else  arrived.  "I 
don't  believe  you're  a  bit  more  excited  than  I 
am,  Peggy,"  Mary  laughed.  And  another 
surprise  was  when  Uncle  Philander  and  his 
wife  drove  into  town,  with  a  bushel  or  two  of 
flowers  piled  about  them  in  the  buggy. 

"They're  not  such  awful  stylish  flowers," 
beamed  Aunt  Phoebe.  "Of  course  there's  a 
few  roses,  but  most  of  our  bushes  bloomed  them- 
selves 'most  to  death  in  June  and  haven't  done 
much  since.  The  rest  are  just  everyday  posies, 
so  to  speak,  but  they'll  make  little  bright  spots 
around  the  house,  and  anyway,  you  can't  have 
too  many -flowers  a/t  a  wedding." 

At  four  o'clock  the  bridesmaids  went  home 
to  dress.  The  mother  of  the  flower  girl 
pounced  on  her  and  carried  her  upstairs. 

"Peggy,  dear,"  said  Mrs.  Eaymond  warn- 
ingly. 

"Just  a  minute  mother.  1  want  to  tell 
Graham  something."  Peggy  led  her  lover  into 
a  corner  and  whispered  in  his  ear,  "Don't  you 


A  JULY  WEDDING  319 

want  to  come  back  and  get  a  glimpse  of  me 
after  I'm  dressed/ r 

"Well  rather." 

"Because  you  know,  if  you  don't  like  me," 
dimpled  Peggy,  "it's  not  too  late  to  change 
your  mind. ' '  She  was  inclined  to  be  reproach- 
ful when  Graham  caught  her  in  his  arms  and 
kissed  her  before  everybody,  but  Graham  in- 
sisted it  was  her  own  fault,  and  on  reflection 
Peggy  decided  he  was  right. 

At  six  o  'clock  the  little  church  was  well  filled. 
In  spite  of  Graham's  teasing,  Peggy's  humble 
friends  could  hardly  be  distinguished  from 
their  so-called  betters.  Hildegarde  Carey 
slender  and  elegant,  sat  in  the  pew  behind 
Elvira  Bond,  and  noticed  nothing  peculiar  ex- 
cept that  Elvira  blew  her  nose  of  tener  and  with 
more  emphasis  than  is  customary  on  such  oc- 
casions. It  was  either  that  or  weep,  and 
Elvira  chose  the  least  of  the  two  evils.  As  for 
Jimmy  Dunn,  with  his  purple  necktie  and  a 
large  scarfpin  that  resembled  a  diamond,  he 
was  fairly  resplendent. 

The  march  pealed  out  and  the  people  rose. 
Up  the  aisle  came  the  bridesmaids  walking 


320  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

very  slowly.  The  little  flower  girl,  all  smiles, 
seemed  as  unconscious  as  if  weddings  were  an 
old  story  in  her  experience.  And  then  came 
Peggy  on  her  father's  arm,  and  Elvira  Bond 
was  not  the  only  one  whose  eyes  brimmed  over 
as  she  passed. 

A  great  deal  can  happen  in  five  minutes. 
The  organ  pealed  out  again,  and  now  Peggy 
was  Mrs.  Graham  Wylie.  She  put  her  hand  on 
her  husband 's  arm  and  smiled  up  into  his  face, 
Peggy's  own  sunny  smile.  She  had  promised 
for  better  or  for  worse,  but  in  her  heart  of 
hearts  she  was  confident  that  the  future  held 
only  good  for  the  two  of  them.  And  as 
Graham  was  equally  positive  on  that  score, 
they  went  down  the  aisle  with  illumined  faces. 

Only  a  few  besides  the  two  families  came  to 
the  house  from  the  church.  These,  with  the 
out-of-town  guests  like  Elaine  and  Lucy,  and 
the  wedding  party,  filled  the  cosy  little  house  to 
overflowing.  Mary  Donaldson  sat  in  a  corner, 
radiant;  and  since  she  could  not  cross  the 
room  to  kiss  the  bride,  the  bride  crossed  to 
kiss  her. 

It  was  after  the  chicken  salad  had  been  dis- 


A  JULY  WEDDING  321 

posed  of,  and  they  were  passing  the  ice  cream, 
that  Peggy's  attention  focussed  itself  on  her 
new  friend,  Mr.  Kennedy.  He  stood  by  him- 
self for  the  moment  and  his  face  was  rather 
grave  for  a  young  man,  a  guest  at  a  wedding. 
But  as  he  caught  her  eye,  he  smiled  resolutely 
and  came  over  to  her. 

"I'm  sorry  you're  going  away,  Mrs.  Wylie, 
just  as  I  met  you.  It  doesn't  seem  fair." 

"I'm  sorry,  too,"  said  Peggy.  "If  we'd 
only  known  that  night  at  the  Green  Parrot  that 
you  were  a  friend  of  Graham's  it  would  have 
simplified  matters  so  much." 

Mr.  Kennedy's  face  again  lost  its  smile.  He 
turned  and  looked  the  company  over.  "Your 
friend  Hitchcock  isn't  here  to-night,  is  he?" 

Peggy  was  delighted.  She  had  been  wishing 
for  a  chance  to  bring  Horace  into  the  conver- 
sation, and  here  Mr.  Kennedy  had  done  it  him- 
self. When  again  the  young  man  looked  at  her, 
he  was  almost  startled  by  the  radiant  mischief 
of  her  face. 

"Horace  Hitchcock  here?  Oh,  dear,  no!  I 
can't  think  of  anybody  I'd  be  less  likely  to  ask 
to  my  wedding. ' ' 


322  PEGGY  RAYMOND'S  WAY 

" That's  one  point,  evidently,  on  which  you 
and  Miss  Combs  are  not  in  agreement. ' ' 

Peggy  pondered.  "Priscilla  might  ask  him 
to  her  wedding.  I  don't  know.  But  it's 
certain  he  didn't  ask  her  to  his." 

Young  Mr.  Kennedy's  start  was  unmis- 
takable. "You  don't  mean  he's  married?" 

"Yes  indeed.  There  was  quite  an  account 
of  it  in  the  papers.  But  if  you  didn't  know 
his  name,  you  wouldn't  remember." 

"No,  I  wouldn't  remember,"  agreed  Mr. 
Kennedy.  All  at  once  he  was  beaming.  "I 
shall  be  glad  when  the  next  two  years  are  up, 
Mrs.  Wylie,"  he  cried  boyishly.  "I  have  a 
hunch  that  you  and  I  are  going  to  be  great 
friends." 

A  moment  later  he  joined  Priscilla,  and  from 
that  time  on  followed  her  about  like  her 
shadow,  and  the  observant  Peggy  smiled  ap- 
proval. She  was  not  in  the  least  discomfited 
by  Graham's  reference  to  high  explosives. 
The  most  dangerous  things  in  the  world,  in  her 
estimation,  were  misunderstandings. 

At  ten  o'clock  the  bride  went  upstairs  to 
change  to  her  little  going-away  suit  with  the 


A  JULY  WEDDING  323 

Eton  Jacket,  that  made  her  look  hardly  older 
than  the  Peggy  Raymond  who  entered  college. 
And  then  the  good-bys  began.  "We'll  be  back 
in  a  few  days,"  said  Peggy  as  she  kissed  each 
one,  but  even  that  assurance  failed  to  give  com- 
fort. For  though  Peggy  and  Graham  were 
coming  back  for  twenty-four  hours,  they  were 
to  sail  on  the  sixth.  Peggy's  friends  returned 
her  smiles  bravely,  but  there  was  hardly  one 
who  did  not  struggle  to  keep  back  the  tears. 

They  crowded  out  on  the  porch  to  see  her  go. 
Some  one  hurled  an  old  shoe  as  the  taxi-cab 
glided  away.  Peggy  leaned  from  the  window 
to  wave  her  hand,  and  then  the  darkness 
swallowed  her  up. 

Amy,  Ruth,  and  Priscilla  stood  side  by  side. 
The  tears  were  running  down  Ruth's  cheeks, 
and  Priscilla 's  eyes  were  wet.  Amy  had 
forced  herself  to  smile  during  Peggy's  pro- 
tracted leave-taking  and  'the  smile  persisted, 
though  it  had  become  a  grimace. 

"Is   this   place   called   Friendly   Terrace?' 
Amy  demanded  tragically,  "Or  is  it  the— the 
Dismal  Swamp." 

"Or  the  desert  of  Sahara."  suggested  Pris- 


324  PEGGY  EAYMOND'S  WAY 

cilia,  a  quaver  in  her  voice  showing  that  the 
suggestion  was  not  altogether  a  joke. 

'  *  Girls ! ' '  for  a  moment  Ruth  struggled  with 
a  sob,  but  she  conquered  it  and  went  on  res- 
olutely, "I  don't  know  who  named  Friendly 
Terrace,  but  I  do  know  it  was  Peggy  who  made 
the  name  fit.  And  we've  got  to  keep  it  up. 
We  can't  let  it  become  like  other  little  streets 
where  nobody  cares  for  his  neighbor.  We've 
got  to  show  what  Peggy  meant  to  us  by — by — " 

"By  keeping  the  home  fires  burning,"  inter- 
polated Amy,  and  Ruth  nodded  as  if  the  familiar 
phrase  said  all  she  had  wished  to  say. 

As  the  others  crowded  indoors,  declaring 
after  immemorial  fashion  that  there  had  never 
been  a  prettier  wedding  nor  a  lovelier  bride, 
Peggy's  three  friends  stood  side  by  side; 
Ruth's  hand  was  fast  in  Amy's,  and  Amy's 
arm  was  about  Priscilla's  waist.  And  while 
none  of  them  spoke,  each  of  them  in  her  heart 
was  silently  pledging  herself  to  keep  Friendly 
Terrace  what  Peggy  had  made  it. 


THE  END 


MARK  GRAY'S  HERITAGE 

A  Romance 


?%         By  Eliot  Harlow  Robinson         jp? 

Author  of  "Smiles:     A  Rose  of  the  Cumberlands," 
"Smiling  Pass,"  "The  Maid  of  Mirabclle,"  etc. 

Cloth,  I2mo,  illustrated,  $1.90 

"What  is  bred  in  the  bone  will  never  come  out  of 
the  flesh" 

MR.  ROBINSON'S  distinguished  success  came  with  the 
acclaim  accredited  to  his  novel,  SMILES,  "The  Best- 
Loved  Book  of  the  Year"  and  its  sequel,  SMILING 
PASS.  With  delicate  humor  and  a  sincere  faith  in  the 
beautiful  side  of  human  nature,  Mr.  Robinson  has 
created  for  himself  a  host  of  enthusiastic  admirers. 
In  his  new  book  he  chooses  a  theme,  suggested  perhaps 
by  the  old  proverb  quoted  above  ("Pilpay's  Fables"). 
His  setting  is  a  Quaker  village,  his  theme  the  conflict 
between  grave  Quaker  ideals  and  the  strength  and  hot 
blood  of  impulsive  Mark  Gray. 

Here  is  a  book  that  is  worthy  of  the  reception  ac- 
corded SMILES  by  all  readers  who  appreciate  a  story 
of  deep  significance,  simply  yet  powerfully  built  upon 
fundamental  passions,  wrought  with  a  philosophy  that 
always  sees  the  best  in  troubled  times. 

The  enthusiastic  editor  who  passed  on  MARK 
GRAY'S  HERITAGE  calls  it  — hardly  too  emphati- 
cally —  "A  mighty  good  story  with  plenty  of  entertain- 
ment for  those  who  like  action  (there  is  more  of  that 
in  it  than  in  any  other  of  Mr.  Robinson's  novels).  The 
reading  public  will  unquestionably  call  it  another  'cour- 
age book'  —  which  they  called  the  SMILES  books,  you 
know  The  language  is  both  strong  and  smooth.  The 
s  story  has  a  punch !" 

&a^wxQ®^^ 


POLLY  THE  PAGAN 

Her  Lost  Love  Letters 
jj  i^-**z, 

§  £«£  By  Isabel  Anderson  g|R? 

With  an  appreciative  Foreword  by  Basil  King 
Cloth  decorative,  I2mo,  illustrated,  $1.90 

ISABEL  ANDERSON,  who  heretofore  has  confined  her 
literary  talents  to  writing  of  presidents  and  diplomats 
and  fascinating  foreign  lands,  contributes  to  our  list 
her  first  novel,  POLLY  THE  PAGAN,  a  story  of 
European  life  and  "high  society."  The  story  is  un- 
folded in  the  lively  letters  of  a  gay  and  vivacious  Amer- 
ican girl  traveling  in  Europe,  and  tells  of  the  men 
whom  she  meets  in  Paris,  in  London  or  Rome,  her 
flirtations  (and  they  are  many  and  varied!)  and  excit- 
ing experiences.  Among  the  letters  written  to  her  are 
slangy  ones  from  an  American  college  boy  and  some 
in  broken  English  from  a  fascinated  Russian  Prince 
(or  was  he  disillusioned,  when  after  dining  at  a  smart 
Parisian  cafe  with  the  adorable  Polly  he  was  trapped 
by  secret  police  ?) ;  but  the  chief  interest,  so  far  as 
Polly's  affaires  d'amour  are  concerned,  centers  around 
the  letters  from  a  young  American,  in  the  diplomatic 
service  in  Rome,  who  is  in  a  position  to  give  intimate 
descriptions  of  smart  life  and  Italian  society. 

The  character  drawing  is  clever,  and  the  suspense  as 
to  whom  the  fascinating  Polly  will  marry,  if  indeed  the 
mysterious  young  lady  will  marry  anybody,  is  admi- 
rably sustained. 

8 

&®a&&Q^&c^ 


UNCLE  MARY 


A  Novel  for  Young  or  Old 


By  hla  May  Mullins  §& 

Author  of  "The  Blossom  Shop"  books,  "Tweedie,"  etc. 
Cloth  decorative,  I2mo,  illustrated,  $1.75 

SINCE  the  great  success  of  POLLYANNA  there  have 
been  many  efforts  to  achieve  the  "GLAD  BOOK"  style 

Trade  Mark 

of  fiction,  but  none  so  successful  as  Mrs.  Mullins' 
UNCLE  MARY. 

Here  is  a  story,  charming  in  its  New  England  village 
setting,  endearing  in  its  characters,  engrossing  in  its 
plot,  and  diverting  in  its  style.  The  PAGE  imprint 
has  been  given  to  many  books  about  beautiful  char- 
acters in  fiction,  —  Pollyanna,  Anne  Shirley,  Rose  Webb 
of  "SMILES,"  and  Lloyd  Sherman  of  the  "LITTLE 
COLONEL"  books.  To  this  galaxy  we  now  add 
"Uncle"  Mary's  protege,  Libbie  Lee. 

Mrs.  Mullins  is  an  author  gifted  with  the  ability  to 
appeal  to  the  young  in  heart  of  whatever  age.  Her 
characters  are  visually  portrayed.  Her  situations  have 
the  interest  of  naturalness  and  suspense.  The  reader 
of  UNCLE  MARY  will  become  in  spirit  an  inhabitant 
of  Sunfield;  will  understand  the  enjoyment  of  the  sud- 
den acquisition  of  wealth,  a  limousine,  and  —  an  adopted 
child  (!),  by  the  sisters,  "Uncle"  Mary  and  "Aunt" 
Alice;  will  watch  with  interest  the  thawing  and  re- 
juvenation of  "Uncle"  Mary,  the  cure  of  Alice,  and  the 
solving  of  the  mystery  of  the  wealth  of  sweet  little 
Libbie  Lee. 


&Xm&XCtt&XC8*t&^V^^ 

THE  RED  CAVALIER 

Or,  The  Twin  Turret*  Mystery 

By  Gladys  Edson  Loc^e 

Cloth  decorative,  I2mo,  illustrated,  $1.90 

HERE  is  a  mystery  story  that  is  different !  The  sub- 
tlety and  strangeness  of  India  —  poison  and  daggers, 
the  impassive  faces  and  fierce  hearts  of  Prince  Bardai 
and  his  priestly  adviser;  a  typical  English  week-end 
house  party  in  the  mystery-haunted  castle,  Twin  Tur- 
rets, in  Yorkshire;  a  vivid  and  contrasting  background. 

And  the  plot!  Who  is  the  mysterious  Red  Cavalier? 
Is  he  the  ghost  of  the  ancestral  portrait,  that  hangs  in 
Sir  Robert  Grainger's  strange  library?  Is  he  flesh  and 
blood,  and  responsible  for  the  marauding  thefts  in  the 
neighborhood?  Is  he  responsible  for  Prince  Kassim's 
murder?  Or  is  it  only  coincidence  that  one  of  the 
guests  at  the  masked  ball  happened  to  wear  the  costume 
of  the  Red  Cavalier? 

Miss  Locke  has  been  able  to  weave  a  weird  and  ab- 
sorbing tale  of  modern  detective  romance,  the  strange- 
ness of  India  in  modern  England. 

There  is  Lady  Berenice  Coningsby,  a  bit  declasse; 
Ethelyn  Roydon,  more  so;  Princess  Lona  Bardai,  "Little 
Lotus-Blossom,"  sweet  and  pathetic;  Mrs.  Dalrymple, 
the  woman  of  mystery;  Miss  Vandelia  Egerton,  the 
spinster  owner  of  Twin  Turrets.  There  is  dashing  Max 
Egerton  and  the  impeccable  Lord  Borrowdean ;  Captain 
Grenville  Coningsby;  Prince  Kassim  Bardai,  with  the 
impenetrable  eyes,  and  Chand  Talsdad,  his  venerable 
adviser.  Which  of  them  is  the  Red  Cavalier? 

wiag^iyGSi^^ 


.;    [HERN  n  J    MM  I  MMn  •- 

III:  II 


A    000130701     6 


